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Hopoghan Hackingh. 



HOBOKEN, 



PLEASURE RESORT 



FOR 



OLD NEW YORK, 



BY 



CHARLES H. WINFIELD, 



Member of the New Jersey Historical Society; Corresponding Member of the New York Historical Society, of the Minisink 
Valley Historical Society, of the Historical Society of Wisconsin, of the New York Genealogical and Biographical 
Society. 

Authcir of the "History of Hudson County. N. .1.,' "History of the Land Titles of Hudson County, N. J.," "Surprise and 
Capture of Paulus Hoeek," "Monograjih on the Founding of .lersey City," etc., etc. 



♦ » » 

Si computes annos, exiguum tempus; si vices rerum levum putes. — Pliniu.s Minor. 



THE CAXTON PRESS 

NEW YORK 



I <$f^L^ 



/» 






HoBOKEN Illustrations. 



Indian Deed of Hoboken, July 12, KiSO.* 

THE Mansion house of Colonel .Stevens, which was siirroiindeii hy Lrniunds laid out with iri'eat 
judgment and taste, in the liest modern style, and ornamented uiiii a profusion of shrulilxry and trees, 
and perfumed with showei-s of rose* and other flowers, giving the extensive fields the apiiearauee of a 
succession of gardens. 

THE GREEN, near the Ferry. 

On reaching the shore at llohoken Ferry, you rise a gentle ascent to a lawn in front of a large 
and commodious inn. The lawn is shaded with noldc elms and other wholesome trees, under wliieli the 
vi.sitor may generally find a fresh and invigorating sea-breeze, and have choice refreshments brought to 
his seat. Here, throwing aside all care, people of every grade in society meet to pass the afternoon 
when the heat of the city is oppressive. — Dislurnell (1835). 

A WOOD SCENE, Hoboken Walk. 

The scene chosen liy the artist is lovely in the extreme. The eye pierces away into the woody 
winding path on the right; and on the left, a beautiful and well-known glimpse of the bay and city 
will designate the spot as one probably vivid in the recollection. The light is shed down softly 
through the branches of the forest, and the foliage and trunks of the trees are very happily executed. 
The whole landscape, with the verdant groves and cool shade.s, has a rich look. The picture is from a 
painting by Weir, from a spot in one of the new walks near the Mansion House, painted in aliout ls;U. 

Incipient Ferris wheel, set up in the Elysian Fields, near the Colonna.le. 

Part of Map of hoboken, showing localities. 

Map of the southerly end of Hoboken, showing location of tlie old I'erry ;uid tlie 
'7<i House. 

elysian Fields and colonnade— I83(i. 

Old Print, showing the Tli House, tlie iMTry. with its [KTiaguas, and tiii^ Creek dividing .Icrsey 
City and Hoboken. 

season Ticket, hoboken turtle Club, 
sybil's cave. 



* These two puffps are a far similr of tlie liuIiMii Heed rif Hoboken to I'. I'niiw. It is tlw (Irst deed recorded in New 
Netherland. 



Index to Illustrations. 



PAGES. 

Froxtisi'iece ......... 8 

Im.ian \)\:kd to IIonoKKN. .Ii i.v I'_'. HVM) .... 22, 2:i 

Tm; '7i> II'>i>i: and I'i:i;i;v — Ni.w ^'()I!K in tiii; Distan'cf, ... 47 

SiCCTIO.N OK Loss' ,Ma1'. S|I((\VIN(; '7<i lloisi; AM> Fl.lMIV . 51 

Skaso.n 'I'k kit, IIokokkn 'I'iktij; Cmij ..... 54 

'rili; COLONNADK IN I^I.YSIAN Fll'.l.lis ..... ')7 

On Tin: (iKKkx in Front of tiii; '7"> llorsr, .... (U 

C'oi.oNKi, Stkvkns' >[ansion ON Castm; I'oINT .... 05 

Tn( ll'IKNT FkRKIS WlIKKl- IN FlYSIAN FiKLDS .... ()i» 

Section of Doimjlass' AFm' — Localitiks in IIouokkn ... 7^^ 

Sibyl's Cave ......... 77 



Preface. 

Till'", t'ollnwiiii; .Mniiiiiii:i|i|i dm l|i)l)okcii uTi'W out of ii l*ii|K'r read Ix't'orc tlic Ni'w 
York Historical Society, in Dcccmlxi-, IS'.il. Tliat I'aptT forms l*ait 
Seeoiul of this little voluiiu-. I'ait First of the voliiiue consists of historical facts, 
necessary to a full knowledge of Hohokeu in the [past. 1 do not tliink that luiich of 
its early history remains to he written. 

Tiic illustrations will add largely to tlic intcifst of the suliject, and will preserve 
many local views already past the recollection of the "oldest inlialiitunt." 

In a foot-note I have attempted an explanation of the origin of the name. I 
confess that my views are not in accord with the views of historians who have ex- 
pressed themselves on the suhject, but I submit them to the reader and to his candid 

judgment. 

C. H. W. 

Jeksev City, Novcmher 1, 1S0.5. 



PART FIRST. 




PART FIRST. 

^?^^^HK first ret'erence in tlie aiuials <it' New Xotlioilaiid to tlie place 
now calloil Hobol<en is fouiul in the journal of RolxM't Juet, 
the Mate of the " Half Moon." Hudson was rctuinini^- from his 
trip nj) the river now bearing his name. On the second 
day of October, 1(>()I>, lie reached the upper part of Man- 
hattan Island. There he was attacked by the Indians. After 
describing this incident, Juet .says : " Within a whiU' after, we got downe two 
leagues beyond that place, and anchored in a Bay, cleere from all danger of tliem 
on the other side of the riuer, where we saw a good piece of ground ; and hard 
by it there was a Cliffe, that looked of the colour of white greene, as though it 
were either Copjier, or Siluer Myne : and I thini< it to be one of them, by the 
Trees that grow vpon it. For they are all liiirnrd, nnd the other ])lace.s are greene 
as gra.sse." 

!More than twenty years pa.ssed before another reference is made to this place. 
Tlien the Director and Council of New Netherland in behalf of Michiid Pauw, 
Lord of Achtienhoven, purchased from the native owners the land spoken of by Juet. 
The following is a translation of the deed, or acknowledgement of conveyance. It 
is the first recorded deed in the records of New Netherland : 

"We, Director and Council of New Netherland, residing on the Island of Manahatas and the 
Fort Amsterdam, under the authority of their High Mightinesses the Lords States-General of this 
United Netherlands and the Incorporated West India Conipanj-, at their Chambers at Amsterdam, 
do hereby witness ami declare that on this day, the date hereof underwritten, before us in their 
proper persons appeared and showed themselves, to wit : Arommeauw, Tekwappo, and Sackwomeck, 
inhabitants and joint owners of the land called Ilobocan Hackingh,* lying over against (opposite) 



* Whence came the name Hoboken as applied to this place? With much un.animity writers have adopted the opinion of 
Mr. O'Callaghan in his History of New Netherland : "Hoboken is so called after a village of the same name, situate on the 
Scheldt, a few miles south of Antwerp." The statement does not bear on its face any indication of doubt of its correctness. Yet I 
venture to affirm that if he or any one who adopts his opinion, should be asked for his authority, or to give a reason for his as- 
sertion, he would face a difficult t.isk. I admit that the present spelling of the name on the Hudson lends plausibility to the 



20 :\[OXOGRAPH OF HOBOKEX. 

the aforesaid Island Mauahatas, who both for themselves and, rato cavern, for the remaining joint 
owners of the same laud, declared that for and in consideration of a certain quantity of merchan- 
dize, which they acknowledged to have received into their own hands, power and possession, before 
the passing of these presents in a right, true, and free ownership, have sold, transported, ceded, 
conveyed, and made over, and by these presents they do transport, cede, and convey to and for the 
behoof of Mr. Michiel Pauw, absent, and for whom we, e.r-officio, accept under suitable stipulations, viz. : 
the aforesaid lauds by us named Hobocan Hackingh, extending on the south side, Ahasimus ; east- 
ward, the River Mauritius, and on the west side surrounded by a valley (marsh) and morass, through 
which the boundaries of .said land can be seen with sufficient clearness and be distinguished ; and 
that, with all the jurisdiction, right, and equity, to them, the grantors, in their quality aforesaid, be- 
longing: Constituting and putting in their place and stead the already mentioned Mr. Pauw, in 
the real and actual possession thereof, and at the same time giving full and irrevocable power, au- 
thority and special command to the said Mr. Pauw peaceably to enjoy, occupy, cultivate, have and 
hold the aforesaid land tanquam actor et procurator in rem suam acproprium ; and also to do with 
and dispose of the same as he might do with his own lands to which he has a good and lawful 
title ; without their, the grantm-s, in their quality aforesaid, saving or reserving any part, right, 
action, or authority thereto in the least, either of ownership or jurisdiction ; but altogether to the 



claira of its origin. This, prolxably, woulil be tlie best, if not the only reason that could be given for its alleged relationsliip to 
the village on the Scheldt. 

1. Why should the place have lieen named after such an insignificant village? Why not honor it with the name of some town 
of more prominence as w.i.s done in "Amsterdam" on Manhattan, .and "Flushing" on Long Island. It does not appear that any 
of the men .acting for Mr. Pauw in this purchase claimed that village as his birth place or former residence, nor that Pauw was 
interested in it. Certainly the surroundings and features of the two places were not so alike that the name of the one naturally 
suggested a name for the other. In fact, there was no resemblance. That was a plain sandy level, this an island — hilly and roll- 
ing ; that was reclaimed from the sea and protected from inundation by dykes, this was glacial drift deposited on the outcropping 
rock, and in some places nearly one hundred feet above high water. 

2. If it was the intention to name this place in honor of the village on the Scheldt, wliy was not that intention carried out ? 
It must be presumed that the Director and Council of Xew Netherhnid were men of at le.i,st fair education. They must have 
known something of tlie geography of their own country. The village of Hoboken so near to Antwerp, at that time one of the 
most flourishing towns in the country, could not have been unknown to them, insignificant though it w.as. Yet, in this deed for 
an important tract of land, where the conveyance was made as much by the name of the land as by boundaries, and therefore 
accuracy of expression is to be looked for, the name is written as no Dutchmen, before or since, ever wrote the name of the vil- 
lage on the Scheldt. A.\\ contemporaneous writings (and I think for a hundred and lifty years afterward) in this country and in 
Europe, show tliat one name w.as spelled difTerently froru tlie other. Even the Directors and States-General spelled the word as 
thev had received it from the New Xetherland, seemingly without a suspicion that it was the name of their own village. This 
certainlv seems incredible. It can be accounted for only on the supposition that they regarded the names of the two places as 
entirely different. 

3. The deed was drawn and put into its present shape by the authorities of Xew Netherland. In the part descriptive of the 
grantors they are said to be " inhabitants and joint owners of the land called Hobocan Hackingh." It was the land, (Hackingh) 
not a settlement that had the name by which the Indians were supposed to know it and by which they were conveying it. It 
would appear from this expression that this was a well-known name of the place. But when the fraraers of the deed came to 
write a description of the land granted, a doubt seems to have entered their minds, if they h.ad correctly named it in the early 
part of the deed. A fair construction of the phrase " inhabitants and joint owners of the land called Hobocan Hackingh" is that 
the grantors knew the land by that name. Therefore, in the granting part of the deed the phrase was modified by saying "the 
land was hi/ vs named Hobocan Hacking." This I regard as a confession that the writers of the deed were doing the best they 



V 




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IXriIA>' DEKI) OF UOBOKEX, .TCLY 12, 1C30. 









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>^p«W-ic-/«^")t tikis' *-*-5^i'Vt.yc*?f'' r-tj7»^ri.f..cti<^ .i^itrc-x-i«^ii-LW>U'>'J ;(lntu*ifv 














INDIAN DEED OF HOBOKES, JULY 12, 1630. 



MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKKX. 25 

behoof as aforesaid, henceforth, forever, wholly and linally ilcsistiiii,^ reuouncin<r, ami quit-clainiiug ; 
promising herel)y, moreover, not only to keep, maintain, and fullill this, tlieir giant, and whatever 
shall be done by virtue thereof, inviolable and irrevocable forever, but also to keeji and maintain 
the same land against all persons free from any claim, challenge, or incundn-ancc to bo made thereon 
by any person; as also to cause this sale and grant to be approved of and luld valiil by the 
remaining joint owners as they are by right obligated to do; all in goud I'aith witimnt fraud or 
deceit. 

In witness whereof these presents are confirmed with our usual signature and with our seal 
thereto affixed. 

Done at the aforesaid Island of Manabata.s, in Fort Amsterdam, this 12tli .Inly, 1G30." 

SubsetiiKiitly, I'aiiw scniicil titlf to Aliasinuis, Aresick and Htateii Island. 
Under the freedoms and e.xeniptions such ownersliij) entitled him to the di<;nity 
and authorilv of a Palrodu, or fendal I'liicf nf tlu' territory. Latiiii/.iui;- his lunnc 
and bestowing it npon his colony, it was thenceforth known as raxonia. 

This colony was regarded as of vast prospective importance. It eonlrolled the 



could witii a name in a languafje new and ditliciilt to them. But tliev were not conlident tluit tliey liad undeislood the word cor- 
rectly. To thoni it sounded like Ilobocan llackingh, and, therefore, they liesitatingly said "by us called llobocan Ilackingh." 

4. When did Iloboken on the Scheldt become burdened with an Indian sutlix'.' When and where, before or since, was it so 
written? The sutlix, ''Ilackingh" is said to mean the lami iij] or the place of. When it is ailded to Ilobocan (if by tluit name 
Iloboken on the Sheldt is meant) what is the meaning of the compound word? Will it be said " the land of Iloboken?" Is 
there any sense in that? Sewanhacky is said to mean " the land of the Sewan," or the place where that money was made. So 
" Ilobocan Ilaikingh " must mean the land of something which had e.tisted on llial .h/)o<, not on the Scheldt, and by which the 
place was then known. The Indians had never heard of the Scheldt or its village. If the word " Ilobocan " is Dutch, and was 
intended for " Iloboken," that is easily understootl. It is only an instance of different spelling. liut why add to it a word which 
had never belonged to it and which only confuses. If they had said "Antwerp Ilackingh," the name would have contained as 
much sense as the name " Ilobocan Ilackingh." " Ilackingh" is admittedly an Indian word, and if "Ilobocan" is Dutch, the two 
when united form a hybrid, half Dutch and half Indian ; reminding one of the Minotaur of Kuripides. 

" .\ niin^jled form prodigious lo bcboM, 
Half-bull, half-man." 

5. -Many pLucs in this vicinity liud Imliau names: as I'embrepogh, Miiikakwa, Kiwan, Apuiualyk, (icriioenciiaeu, Aiasock, 
Ahasimus, Sikakes and .Vwichaken. It would have been a singular and striking omission, if so prominent and beuiitifid a body 
of land as Hoboken had been left nameless. It is true that many of these names are sadly deformed in their transition from one 
language to the other. But when a name, pronounced in the native gutterals, had been filtered through a Dutchman's ear, and 
licked into shape by a Dutchman's tongue, very close resemblance to the original was not in all ca.scs to be found uv cxpiiliil. 
In many instances its recognition was beyond the skill of the philologist. 

Hoporjhan was the name which had been given to the place by the natives. 'I'liiy knew it by that name and were conveying 
it by that name. It is easily seen how " Ilobocan " was made out of " Ilopoghan." The only way the Dutchmen could get at the 
name was by the sound. The natives pronounced it and the strangers wrote it phonetically. .\d(l to tlic word " Ilopoglian" '.lie 
suffix "Hackingh," and the conclusion is irresistible that the compound is exactly the word wliiili ilic Dutchman wrote " Ilo- 
bocan Ilackingh." "Hopoghan" is said to mean tobacco pipe, made from the soap stone found at Ca.stle I'oint. It is also fre- 
quently used in a symbolic sense to express crookedness, and may have been here so used in reference lo the shore of the river. 
The notion of writers that the name comes from the village on the Scheldt is wholly erroneous. It is Inilian ami nothing else : 
"Hopoghan Ilackingh" the land of the tobacco pipe, or symbolically, the laud of crookedness. 



26 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

shore opposite Manhattan Island, and dominated the native commerce from the south 
and west. The Dutch West India Company from the beginning had (k'signed to 
make New Amsterdam the emporium of their trade, and to that end required that all 
fruits and wares "that arise on the North River and lands lying thereabouts " should 
be first brought there. Whatever antagonized that design was regarded with disfavor 
by the company. It was not long, therefore, before the Patroon of Pavonia found 
himself in a heated controversy with the other directors. This threatened the i)ros- 
perity of the company. But peace was restored in 1G34 or 1635 (for the transfer is 
without date), by the Patroon's release to the company of his interest in Pavonia for 
26,000 florins. The company having secured this important tract, and desiring to 
make known to all subsequent settlers that private ownership should not thereafter 
attach to land in Pavonia opposite New Amsterdam, gave general notice that it re- 
served unto itself " the land of Achassemes, Arasick and IIol)okina." 

The first wdiite occujmnt of Hoboken was Hendrick, son of Cornells Van Vorst, 
the Patroon's Commissary. How or when he first obtained possession is not known. 
It was probably through his father's influence, and it could not have been earlier than 
the latter part of the year 1636. Nor is it known by what tenure he was in posses- 
sion. But on March 12tli, 1639, he received from Director Kieft a lease of the place 
for twenty years from January 1st, 1640. In this lease, the place is said to have 
"been until now occupied l)y him." The meaning of this is that he was not only 
the first, but up to this time the only occupant of the place. He agreed to give as 
rent " every year the fourth part of the crop with which God may bless the land, 
either in sheaves U2:)0n the field or as may be deemed most advantageous, and twelve 
capons every year." At the expiration of the lease, the land was to lie surrendered 
unsown. He also agreed to erect on the bouwery a barn and all other necessary 
buildings at his own expense, the company delivering to liim 4,000 bricks to build a 
chimney. It is not probable that Van Vorst made any of these contemplated im- 
provements, for, in the summer of 1639, he returned to Holland and there died. 

On February loth, 1640, Director-General Kieft, in the name of the company, 
leased the place to Aert Teunissen Van Putten for twelve years from January 1st, 
1641. The Director agreed to erect a small house on the place, and Van Putten 
agreed to yield as rent " the fourth sheaf with which God Almighty shall favor the 
field." There is no doubt that the house which the company built under this agree- 



MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEX. 27 

ment was the first building in Hoboken. Van Vorst was iiiiniarried and probably 
lived at his father's, in Ahasimus. 

Van Putten, without delay, Ix'gan to improve his leasehold. He cleared the land, 
fenced the fields and erected a brew-house. Thus he became tlic first brewer in the 
State, and Hoboken the \i]nee where beer was natuializcd to Jerseymen. He stocked 
his farm with twenty-eight head of large cattle, besides various small stock, such as 
swine, goats, sheep, etc. He also .set out many fruit trees. 

On tlio breaking out of tlie war in liUl], \';\n Putten was away from home 
on a trading expedition, and was killed near Sandy llocik. His live stock was de- 
stroyed, his dwelling house, barns and stacks of grain were burnl. The only one of 
all his improvements remaining was the brewery. 

It was not long after \'aii Putten's death that Sybout Claesen, a carpenter in 
New Amsterdam, married his widow, and tlicn in her name claimed a right to the 
possession of Hoboken. In his petition lie .set forth that the lircw-liouse (which 
was still standing in 1(j4'.M was l)uilt with her own means, and of right belonged 
to her. Director Kieft ignored this claim and leased the island to Uierck Claessen. 
Tills lessee afterwards aluiiHloned the place, so that at the eml of the year 1649 it 
lay unoccupied. 

When the war of \i'>.~,.~} broke out the Indians, driven fVoni New Amsterdam, 
crossed to Hoboken, where, " in the twinkling of an eye," a house was in fiames, 
and all Pavonia was soon on lire. Again the desolation of this part of the country 
was complete. It was abandoned by every settler. 

At what time Nicholas Verleth (Varlet) became interested in tlie place is not 
known, but in .March, [(>•'>('>, he sold the frame of a house at Hoboken to Michael 
Jansen, and requested the aid of the government in getting it across the river. But 
owing to the unsettled state of affairs, and to the fact that the Indians claimed the 
frame, the request was refused. On October 14tli, 1<)0(>, Varleth married Anna, the 
sister of Gov. Stuyvesant and widow of Samuel Bayard. From that time his career 
was conspicuous. On Fel). o, 1()03, he received from Governor Stuyvesant a grant of 
138 morgens of land, which represented Hoboken. This was confirmed to him by 
Governor Carteret, jNIay 12, 1668, by the following bounds : " Beginning at the Mouth 
of the Creek that Parts Hobocken from Wiehaken (being the Place of Beginning also 
of Wiehaken Patent), and from thence running up said Creek as it runs to a stake at 



28 MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEN. 

the Foot of the Hill (which stake stands North fifty-two Degrees and a Half West 
Eighteen Chains and sixty-thi-ee Links from the Mouth of said Creek. Then from the 
said stake Westerly along the foot of the Hill One Hundred and thirteen Chains and 
a half on a straight line to a stake by a Creek which Parts Hobocken from the 
Meadows lying North of Horsimus (from which stake the said Creek runs about 
twelve Chains on a course South Sixty -six Degrees and a Half East). Then down 
said Creek as it runs to Hudson's River, then up along Hudson's River as it runs to 
the Place of Beginning." 

A^arleth died seized in 1675. From his heirs, Samuel Bayard, his step-son, de- 
rived title. William Bayard, one of the latter's descendants, was the owner and in 
possession of the place when the Revolutionary AVar broke out. He was a man of 
wealth and refined taste. He had taken much j^ride in improving the Island. In 
1760 there was on it a garden of five acres filled with a choice collection of English 
fruit, such as peaches, pears, j^lums, cherries, nectarines and apricots ; a large dwelling 
house, and another adjoining under the same roof used as a farm-house, with con- 
venient cellars and an " extraordinary kitchen ; " out houses, a new smoke house, 
fowl house, a large stable, with stalls for ten horses on a side, over which was a 
granary and hay loft, which would hold twenty loads of hay. Upon the farm 
were thirty milch cows and thirty young cattle, twenty fat hogs, six fat cattle and 
a pair of oxen. Besides an old orchard capable of producing eighty barrels of 
cider a year, there were about one thousand young trees, all grafted with the best 
fruit. 

In April, 1771, Mr. Bayard, then residing at Castle Point, was desirous of rent- 
ing the place, and his description of it shows that its attractiveness had not de2")re- 
ciated : " The pleasant situated and convenient House, Out-Houses, Stables, Farm 
and Grounds at Hoebuck, lately established into a Ferry, opjiosite the City of New 
York, on the west side of the Jersey Shore, and kept by Cornelius Hearing. The place 
has every convenience suitable for the purpose of a Ferry, and the entertainment 
of travellers in the best manner, such as one of the best of wharfes, with three pair 
of stairs, for every wind that blows ; ground for pasture, mowing ground that will 
iu a good season produce at least forty loads of clover hay. A garden spot scarcely 
to be equalled, and filled with the greatest plenty of the best of fruits ; the liberty 
of cutting as much salt hay as is wanted for all the custom of the place ; and a 



MOXOGKAPII OF IIOBOKEN. 29 

better fishing place for catching shad, etc., there is not on the North River, with 
plenty of oystei'S in the creek and before the door." 

In the midst of these elegant comforts Mr. Bayard spent his summers, and en- 
tertained with splendid hospitality.* On his estate the patriarchal institution of 
slavery was well established, and lent a glamour to the dignity of its wealthy 

owner.f 

During the War of the Revolution, in the absence of its owner, Hobokcn, witli its 
fine l)uildings, extensive orchards and beautiful gardens, was n sore teni|)tatiiin to the 
marauders of both sides. On July 28th, 177S, a party of Light Horse of the Patriots 
visited Iloebuck and carried off a great number of cattle. (Jn July 25th, 1779, Gen- 
eral Pattison warned Lieut-Ool. Xau Ihiskirk that large jiarties of his regiment fre- 
quently went to Hoebuck, and there made great depredations on the house of ]\Ir. 
William Bayard, as well as on his garden and other lands. ( )n Saturday, 
August 2()tli 1780, the ''rebels" Imirit Colonel William Bayard's new house and 
barn at Castile, on the north end of iloebuck, and destroyed all the forage and 
timber to be fouiul there to a very large amount. 8o far as now appears, this 
act of incendiarism left on Hoboken only a small brick house built by Mr. 
Bavard in 177-'. It stood on the hill near the ferry. Afterwards it was enlarged 
by the addition of a frame building, and became the rear ])art of the tavern known as 
the '"7G House." 

After the City of New York had fallen into the hands of the enemy, and the 
patriot armv had been driven back t(jward the Delaware, Mr. Bayard, who at first 
was active in the cau.se of the Colonies, withdrew his assistance, and, on INIay 1, 
1777, joined the Army of the King. For this act his property in New Jersey was 
confiscated to the State, and advertised by the Commissioner of Forfeited Estates to 



* In 1773, Mr. Qiiinov, of Massachusetts, in jourm-ving from tlie South dined witli Col. William Bayard at his seat on tlie 
North River. In 177-5, the delegates from the same State to the Continental Congress were his guests at Castle Point. 

"New YdKK, June 14, 1771. 
t " Kun away from William Bayard's farm, Hoobock, opposite the City of New York, a mulatto servant man, named Charles, 
about 40 years of age, -5 feet 7 or 8 inches high, much pock broken, his head nearly gray, wears a cap sometimes; speaks good 
English, rather thin, understands all kinds of family business, is a good coachman and gardner, and tends well on a gentleman ; 
has carried a number of clothes with him, so that he cannot well be described as to what he wears ; passes, it is said, for a gentle- 
man, and has a forged pass with him. All masters of vessels are forbid to carry him off; and all taverns and other houses from 
enterUiining him. Whoever will secure the said fellow in the nearest gaol where he is taken up, and give the earliest intelli- 
gence to his master, shall Iiave ten dollars reward, and all reasonable charges paid by — William Bayaud." 



30 MONOGRAPH OF JTOBOKEN. 

be sold.* It was ixircliased bj- Colonel Jolua . Stevens, of New York, March 16, 

1784, for £18,3(30. This, however, included much land, Imside the Island of Hoboken. 

Twenty years before this sale the Paulus Hook Ferry had been erected in con- 



* When tlie fact became known tliat this property was to he forced upon tlie market, the Baron Steuben set his heart upon 
its ac(iuisitiim. To tliis end lie endeavored to secure the influence of Governor Livingston. The following correspondence on 
the subject will be found interesting. The original is in The New York Historical .Society. 

Steuben to Livingston. 

"October, 17S3. 

"Sir: — I take the libei-ty of offering through your Excellency a request to the honorable, the Legislature of the State of 
New Jersey, which if your Excellency should not think improper, I hope will meet your support. 

"There is a house and farm at Hoebuck which was the pi'operty of a Mr. Bayard, but at present I am informed belongs to 
the State. If this house and farm is to be sold I should be happy in having the right of pre-emption. 

"As I have not yet a home in the United States, nor have seen a place which pleases me more than the one above mentioned, 
I shall be much indebted to your Excellency's goodness should the Honorable Assembly think fit to grant me my request." 

Livingston to Steuben. 

"Trenton, 7th Nov., 1783. 

" Sir : I was not honored witli vmu- Letter of the 'JOth of October till three days ago, since which I have been so particularly 

occupied in business as not to have had it in my power to send you a line in answer. 

"Respecting this State's giving you the pre-enqition of the house & farm at Iloebuck, late the property of Mr. Bayard, but 
since confiscated & vested in the State, give me leave to assure you, Sir, that I scarcely know a Gentleman on the whole Conti- 
nentwhom our Assembly would take agreater pleasure in obliging than Baron Steuben ; but Commissioners being appointed by act 
of Leo-islation in every County to sell in the respective Counties the forfeited lands at public auction to the highest bidder, the Assem- 
blv cannot without a new Law repealing the powers vested in the Commissioners for that particular County, respecting that par- 
ticular farm give any directions to the contrary; and your own Good Sense will dictate to you the difliculty of obtaining .such 
repeal in favor of any Individual, from the Precedent that would thereby be established for the claims of other applicants who 
might though without foundation, conceive themselves equally meritorious, & consequently equally entitled to the like indul- 
gence bv leo-islative interposition. Yon know. Sir, the natm-e of our demoeratical Governments. You know the jealousy of Repub- 
licans. Your only wav, therefore, if you still retain your fancy for purchasing the farm in question, is to employ some agent (if 
the farm is not already sold, which I really cannot at present ascertain) to make the purchase for you, limiting him as to the 
sum that he is not to exceed. 

" But if vou never was on the spot yourself in the months of July, August or September, A I thought myself at liberty to 
obtrude mv advice upon you, I would say that considering how often you are exposed to the losiof blood in the way of your pro- 
fession as a Soldier, I would dissuade you from jiutting it in the power of the Musquitoes at Hoebuck to augment the cHiision, for 
never did I set mv foot on a place where that troublesome and venemous little volatile, during those months, swarmed in greater 

abundance." 

On the receipt of tliis letter the old soldier showed .some signs of irritation. It is manifest that bis feelings had been 
wounded. It nuist be adnutted that the Governor's letter bore traces of trilling with one whose magnificent services to this coim- 
try in her liour of need were worthy of recognition. 

On November 17th, 1783, he replied as follows : 

11 gjg . When I took the libertv to address your Excellency my Request to the Legislature of the State of New Jersey, I men- 
tioned the farm and house at Hoebuck, knowing no more about it as that this Place by Confiscation belonged to the State. A 
man who has no house to live in is not very partii'ular in his choice. This, Sir, is really my Case. Several States have made 
me Grants of Lands in the most generous manner. And neither the Demoeratical Principles, nor the jealousie of Repidjlicans, have 
been an obstacle to honor me, with a particular mark of Afiection. 

" In the State of New Jersey I wished for a dwelling house, not as a Grant, but only to buy it liy a Pre-emption, which I would 
have considered as a particular mark of favor conferred on me by the State of New Jersey. But as the apprehension of jealousie 
or other Claim for a similar Prerogative stands in my Way, I withdraw willingly my application." 



MOXOCxRAPII OF IIOBOKEN. 



nection with the new route of travel to Philadelplun, a.ul the South aucl West. And 
ten vears before this sale the Hoboken Ferry was establishea. Nntwithstauaiug these 
factJ the westerly shore of the Hudson was not improved, nor had it attracted set- 
tlers. But graduallv the conviction that this shore had a future forccnl its way n.to 
the minds of enterprising men. Tn ISOl this conviction developed into a movement 
to improve the land lying between Bergen Hill and the river, opposite the City ot 
New York Paulus llouk was purehas.,1 by some enterprising nun ..f New York 
^,,,1 l,i4 ,„, i,,,, a citv. AnutluT wealthy nu.rchant of New York bought the Dutel, 
West India Com,.anv's farm, and lai.l that out int.. a ei.y. ( ■nlonel Stevens uuuu.d,- 
atelv followed in the wake of these movements. He mapped out a part nf Ins laud 
au.Mannched the enterprise under the name of "The New City of Hoboken." The 
lots were put on the market with quite a Ihmrish of trun,pets.=^= Notwithstan.hng 



* The following is a copy of aavcrtisenientimule by Colonel Stevens: „ , ,, ,„, 

"To ..K sn..„ at pnblic auction, at the Tontine Conee. House, in the City of .N.w York, at .2 o eluok, on Mon.U.y .he .Hh 

day of April next ; a. I loboken, on Tuesday, the 10th day of April ; at the Tontine Coflee-IIouse, on IN ednesday, .1.. 1 1 ,h day of 

Vnril, and at Hoboken, on Tuesday, the 12tli day of April. „ xt t i .k. 

"About 8U0 lots of gnn.nd at Hoboken, on Hudson-s Kiver in the township and county of Bergen, New Jersey, and near., 

opposite to tlie City of New York. r ,. it .,.. fcrpr 

" Vs n.anv persons are .lesirous of obtaining situations, where they may transact business free iron, the danger of , ello« fev r, 
the restrictions of ,uan.ntine, the duty on auctions, and the heavy ta.xes of incorporated cities ; t>.e sub«.r.ber ofTe. or sa e e 
.... advantageously situated part of his estate at Hol..ken, laid out in the form of a town, and sub-d.v.ded m to sn,a.. Us . 
convenienceTpurch:..... The town-plo, will extend along the Turn Pike Road towards Hacensack ab.U half an,, 
a street thereon of one hundred feet in breadth. Streets of .0 feet wide will run parallel to ,he ,urn-p, e on each s.dc t c f^ 
On the east side, at the distance of 220 feet from each other, with an alley of 20 feet intervening, so that the lots on this s d w 
be 100 feet deep. On the west side the streeU will be at the distance of 330 feet from each other, wi.h an aley or street o oO 
intervening, so as to form lots on this side of 150 feet deep. Cross streets, -50 feet wide, will nin at right angles to the main 
streets, at the distance of 3 or 400 feet from each other. And nearly in the centre of the town-plot, a square or oblong, o a 
least SOD feet long bv 400 feet wi.le, will be reserved for public uses. The water lots will, for the most par. ha^-e a "-g- " ;^ 
or ,00 feet above the bank of the river, and will e.x.end into the river about 400 feet to the channel. The lots will be 2o feet 

wide in front and in rear. . ir i i „ .. 

.< Hoboken is situated on Hudson's River, nearly opposite to the City of New York. From the ferry-s.aii. a Hoboken 
Declines, near the State Prison, is one mile, which is the shortest distance across the North River, anywhere m .he vic.mty of 
this citv. I. is the point of commencement of the Bergen and Orange turn-pike, and the point of termination of .he land jour- 
nies of pe..,.is comin. ,o this citv from places in a northerly and westerly direction, on the west side of .he nver. I ubhc stage 
carriages arrive at and leave I loboken every day in the year, Sundays excepted. The situation of Hoboken ts healthy, the soil 
is dry sand and gravel, and the water excellent. . 

'' The harbor of Hoboken is as easv of access for vessels from the sea as the harbor of New York, and more convenient for 
vessels navigating Hudson's River. In ihe course of the ensuing summer, wharves will be erected, which will be more secure from 
high winds and ice, than those on the opposite side of the river; and .are-houses will be buih, where ships of any burthen may 
deposit and dispose of their cargoes. Vessels clearing out from the port of Hoboken, during the prevalence of yellow fever in 
this citv, will .avoid .he inconveniences and expenses incident to .luarantines in foreign ports. 

"Thetermsofpaymentforthelotswillbeasfollows,viz: One-ten.h part of the purchase money of each lot to be paid wi.hm 



32 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

the effort jjut forth, not many of them were soM. The result did not meet Colonel 
Stevens' expectations. He, therefore, issued a circular notice that he would continue 
the sale in May. In this notice was a rehearsal of what the House of Assembly 
had given leave to be presented at its next session, and what would be done.* 



ten days after the dav of sale, and the i-emaiiider of the money in four equal annual payments with interest ; on the receipt of the 
first annual i)ayuient, a deed will be given, and a mortgage taken to secure the remaining payments ; those who l)uild a dwelling 
house on a lot within one year from the day of sale, shall have credit for three lots for four years, without interest. A like credit 
will be given to those who erect wharves and store-houses on water lots. 

" The subscriber reserves the right of ferriage, but the owners of water lots may keep boats for crossing for themselves and 
families to and from New York, but not for the use of other persons. 

"It is proposed that the purchasers of lots shall meet at the Tontine Coffee-IIouse, New York, on Saturday thel-lth of ,\pril, 
at 12 o'clock, in order to give names to the several streets, each person to be entitled to as many votes as he has lots in the 
street to be named. 

"A map or plan of the intended town, in whicli the streets and lots are all laid down, on a large scale, from actual measure- 
ment may be seen at the office of Mr. David Di.\on, auctioneer. Copies on a email scale will be published in a few days. 

"The subscriber will loan 120,000 in small sums, for five years at legal interest, to purchasers with small capitals, who are 
desirous of making spirited improvements on their respective lots. " John Stevens. 

" New York, March 22, 1804." 



* Hobo KEN.— The honorable the House of Assembly of the State of New Jersey having given leave that a bill should be 
presented to them on the first Monday of the ne.xt meeting of the legislature, declaring "That whenever it shall be duly certi- 
" fied to the governor or commander-in-chief of the State, that the sum of fifty thousand dollars h;is been actually expended in 
"making wharves, liuildiugs and other improvements at Hoboken aforesaid, and that twenty families have removed to and 
" become iidiabitants of the said place, and that the sum of five hundred thousand dollars luis been subscribed by citizens of the 
"United States, fertile purpose of making other wharves, buildings and improvements, and for erecting a bank, an insurance 
"office, and other useful departments at the said place, tliat then and in such case, the governor or commander-in-chief of the 
" State, shall by letters patent imder his hand and the great seal of the State, create and erect the subscribers aforesaid into a 
•' body politic and eorpi)rate. in deed and in law, by the name. State and title of the president and directors of the Hoboken Coni- 
" pany, and by such name to have perpetu d succession, and all privileges and franchises incident to a corporation, and to be 
" capable of taking and holding their capital stock, both real and personal, and the profits thereof; and of enlarging .such capital 
" stock by new purchases to them and their successors and assigns, in fee simple, or for less estate, or by new subscriptions, 
" in such manner and form as by them may be prescribed, if such enlargement shall from time to time be deemed expedient ; and 
" to be capable of selling and disposing of any part of their real or personal estate at their pleasure, and of di\ iding from time to 
" time all or any part of the profits or increase of the capital stock, and of suing and being sued, and of making regulations rela- 
" tive to the election of officers, and generally of doing all and every other act, matter and thing, which a corporation or body 
"politic may lawfully do." 

Now therefore, notice is hereby given, that a bill for the purposes aforesaid, will be presented to the honorable the House of 
.\ssembly of the State of New Jersey, on :Mon(lay, the 29th day of Octoljer ne.xt. That by the said bill the number of shares in 
the said company will consist of ten thousand (if fifty dollars each, and that the owners of lots at Hoboken will be entitled to sub- 
scribe if they shall think proper, but not otherwise, to ten shares in the company, for each lot they shall have purchased, and 
that such owners shall severally have the privilege of assigning, in the whole or in [lart, such right to subscribe, in case they do 
not choose to become members of the company themselves. 

Dated at Hoboken, the 5th day of May, 1S04. John Stevens. 

X B.— Mr. John Anderson, of Newbuigh, has contracted to carry out a wharf or bulkhead, extending from Front Street to 
Third Street about one thousand feet. Piers will be run from First, Second and Third Streets which will extend between two and 



MONOGUAl'll OF lldlioKEX. 33 

The continuation sale was not very successful. In the course of time Colonel 
iSteveus turned his attention to the beautifvinsT of the i>lace, and niakinii' it attractive 
to visitors. But his efforts in tiiis line only assured hiiu tliat tlie features which ren- 
dered the j)lace so attractive were evanescent. To perpetuate its charms, he (l(V('lo|ied 
a scheme by which he hoped to make them permanent. It is not probable that his 
views on this subject were ever communicated to the public. But recognizing the 
philosophy that a thing of beauty is a joy forever, he matured a plan for placing the 
shore front of his lands in an ownership where they must forever remain public 
property, devoted to the use of the City of New York as a pleasure resort for its 
people. He saw that art must step forward to tame the wildness and devclo[) the 
natural beauty of the island. This would cost more money than one man could 
ordinarily atford to put into the venture. He opened and partially improved a walk 
along the river, which afterwards became such a favorite promenade with the people. 
This work demonstrated at once the necessity of inijirovements, the great expense 
they would entail, ami what a .Mecca for the people of New York ilic place might 
become. Xo attempt was ever made to carry out his scheme. Perhaps it was im- 
practicable, liut it shows the genious and foresight of the man, and leaves one to 
fancy what an Eden of beauty and pleasure nuist have been the lloboken of his 
vision. The paper nnist have l)een written about the year 1824. It is here inserted 
fu" preservation and for pnl)lic information. He says: 

"It is unnecessary to go into details respecting the immense advantages the City 
of New York would derive from an improvement of the margin of the North River 



three hundred feet into the river, forming basins perfectly S3cure fnim storms and ice, .iml at thu end of whiih the water 
will be eighteen feet deep at low water. 

Mr. -Vnderson ha.s engaged ti> complete his contract before the first of December next. Two or tliree hundred feet of the 
wharf, and one of the piers, will probably be finished before the first of .Vugiist next, so that storehouses may be built and vessels 
may be able to discharge their cargoes, before the first of .September next. 

The sale of lots at lloboken will l>e continued at |iublic auction on the premises on Tuesday, the 22(1 May instant, when 
there will be oflered for sale : 

Twenty-five lots on Water Street, fronting .Anderson's wharf. 

Twenty-five lots on Hud.son's Street, 

Fifty lots on Washington Street, 

Fifty lots on Bloomfield Street, 

Forty lots on Garden Street, 

Thirty-two lots on Meadow Street. 

Also, an excellent situation for shipyards, and several good positions lor those who wish to be near the banks at (Greenwich. 



34 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

immediately op2)Osite the city. Tlie Island of Hobokeii extends upwards of a mile 
from the present ferry to its northern extremity. A walk for the whole length has 
already been opened and partially improved. But to do this great work requires a 
capital far beyond the ability of its present owner. He, therefore, would suggest the 
following proposal : 

"That for a reasonable consideration he will convey in fee simple to the Corpora- 
tion of the City of New York, so much of the margin along the shore of said river 
as may be necessary, thus securing to said corporation a perpetuity in whatever im- 
jirovements this body politic may be disposed to make, with this express condition, 
however, that said jiremises, or any part thereof, shall ;it no time hereafter be disposed 
of, either in fee simj^le or on a lease for any 2>eriod of time whatever, but be forever 
continued in the immediate possession, tenure and occupation of said corporation, 
together with the present ferry, and such other ferries as it may hereafter be deemed 
necessary and jiroper to erect and establish, anywhere between the site of the jjresent 
ferry and the northern extremity of what is called Weehawken. 

" As a mere matter of jiecuniary speculation, the advantages derivable from such a 
purchase on the part of the corporation would be incalculable. But immense as they 
may be, they would be small indeed when we take into consideration the vast import- 
ance of such an acquisition as a place of general resort for citizens, as well as strangers, 
for liealth and recreation. So easily accessible, and where in a few minutes the dust, 
noise and bad smells of the city may be exchanged for the pure air, delightful shades 
and completely rural scenery, through walks extending along the margin of the 
majestic Hudson to an extent of more than a mile. The beauties of which may at a 
small expense be made to surpass evei-ything of the kind to l»c found anywhere. 

"The corjjoration now owns the ferries from the city to Hoboken. It will un- 
questionably prove highly advantageous in every point of view that the exclusive 
i"ight on the Hoboken side should be also vested in this corporate body. In such 
case no exclusion can Ije made of the future increase of revenue derivable therefrom. 
The ferries to and fi'om Brooklyn yield at present an immense income, which is 
rapidly increasing as the i)02:)ulation of the city and adjacent country increases. And 
as the existence of the Corporation of the City of New York remains in perpetuo, 
what, we uiav ask, would be the probable amount of revenue derivable from this 
source some .50 or lUO vears hence? 



JIO.N'OGUAIMI OF llOBOKEX. 35 

" Viewing the subject in all it? various aspects, it would seem almost impossible for 
the corporation to pay too much for a site so every way uiiiiiue, and which in tlie 
nature of things must forever continue unrivaled. 

"In a more pecuniary point of view the consideration now asked ought not to be 
considered of the least moment. When we conteui])late the benefits derivable from the 
possession of the margin on the west side of the Hudson for an extent of more than 
a mile, enveloped in a thick shady grove of trees, the rajjid growth, vigor and beauty 
of which wonlil, of course, become an object of pride ami exultation to every citizen. 
When these circumstances are taken into view, we are led to conclude that so desir- 
able an acquisition ought to be secured at .my price. 

" Rut to obviate all objections arising from tlu' present inaliility of the corporation 
to advance the capital ifi|uisite for effecting the purchase and making the recpiisite 
improvements, two gentlemen of nndnubted credit,"' to their immortal honor, now 
offer to step fnrwanl and make such arrangements as will completely relieve the cor- 
poration from all diflicnlties that might arise on that score. Ami the present pro- 
prietor will superintend gratis all operations necessary for carrying the contemplated 
improvements into effect as sjicedily as po.«sibIe. 

"For afforiling every accommodation and refreshment, and also adequate protection 
against sudden showers of rain, a iiuiidier of pavilions should be erected at suitable 
distances and in eligible sites. These should be kept under the immediate control of 
the corporation, and the occui)ants restricted from .selling any kind of intoxicating 
liquors. 

"In the erection of the pavilions every effort should be resorted to, to render them 
the most finished specimens of arcliitectni-al beauty and elegance. And for the attain- 
ment of this object, emulation should l)e excited by conferring adequate premiums on 
such of the plans offered as shall be most approved of by competent judges. And 
let not this be condemned as an unnecessary [)iece of extravagance. Perhaps nothing 
could have a more powerful tendency to civilize the general mass of society, to polish 
and refine the nuxnuers of all classes as the mixed intercourse necessarily taking 
place in such ])romiscuous assemblages of the rich and poor, in situations where 
nature and art are nuule to contribute so largely to the embellishment of every scene 



* John Jacob Astor and Dr. David Hosack. 



36 MONOGRAl'II OF JIOBOKEN. 

presented to their view. The presence, too, of the most respectable members of tlie 
community would operate powerfully in restraining the vicious propensities of the 
licentious, and would give a tone of sobriety :iud decency to the general manners of 
society. And as aiding and powerfully promoting such beneficial effects, the Board 
of Aldermen would have frequent occasion of holding meetings in some one of these 
[lavilions. 

" Some twenty years ago, large sums were expended in l)uilding wharves, etc.,''' 
for the accommodation of shipping, and for converting Hoboken into a seaport town. 
But though this j)rojeet fhen failed, it no doubt might hereafter be carried into 
effect by which the improvement now j^rojiosed would l)e frustrated and defeated. To 
prevent any possibility of encroachments and interference of a like nature, the prop- 
erty should be immediatelj' invested in the corporation. 

" Various causes have combined to make New York a place of fashionable resort, 
a sort of headquarters during the summer season for persons in pursuit of health and 
pleasure from every other quarter of the globe, from which they can take their de- 
parture in every direction with unexampled facility and expedition. The improve- 
ments now suggested would give, however, many additional attractions to this already 
very highly favored city." 

The township of Hoboken Avas set off from the townshi[) of North Bergen March 
1, 1849. It was incorporated March 28, 1855, in the name of " The Mayor and 
Council of the City of Hoboken." The acceptance of the Charter was left to the 
people. The vote thereon was taken on the 29th of the same month, and stood : 
" Charter," 337 ; " no charter," 185. Population in 1895, 54,083. 



* These wluarves were erected in the summer of 1804. Vide Foot Note 6. This fixes tlie date when the above paper was 
written. 



PART SECOND. 




PART SECOND. 

I'RIXG almost the whole of tlio lirst half of tliis century llohokeu 
was a delightful resort for the dwellers of the city. There the 
tnil-worn fduiid I'est, and the wear}' inviguratioii in the sea-tempered 
ail-. There the lover of nature in her simple and (piii't forms found 
a retreat in tiic deep shade of the woods, and he Avho was satis- 
lied with fieiiiiiius entertainments lienniled his leisure hours with 
cheap spurts m in listening to tlie ama/.ing stories of the UKinnteliank. 

Like its hig nciglilxir on the east side of the river, llohoken was an island. 
When and fiom what part of the "up country" it came we do not know, llow it 
came geologists pictend to tell. They do not magnify its importance hy claiming 
that the glacier, which ploughed its irresistilile way down the \allev of the Hudson, 
was formed .solely to Iniild up that Inland. iJiit they do say that in its imperceptihle 
march t<i the sea. with a hasic pressure of si.xty tons to the s(piare foot, it denuded 
ridges and disintegrated rocks, antl hore along to lower levels the result of its contact. 
When it reached water of sufficient depth, mountains of ice were broken from the 
glacier and icebergs laden with nnid, gravel and boulders were floated. These, in moving 
with the winds, or currents, grounded on projecting rocks. One of the.se itrojeetions 
was a serpentine outcrop at Hoboken. On it some of these icebergs dej)Osited their 
hoardings. Thus in course of time "Hopoghan llaekingh" reared its crown above 
the surrounding waters. 

The westerly side of the island was in some places half a mile from the New 
Jersey shore. The intervening water was of considerable depth. This was gradually 
lessened by deposits from the river. ( )ver these deposits the salt grass wove and 
matted a covering decorated with " willow weeds and mallow." The only remnant of 
this body of water which separated the island from the mainland, when the Hollanders 
first .saw it, was a small tide creek which wound around at the foot of the hill 



40 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

from Weehawken to the northerly bound.s of Ahasinius.* On the easterly side the 
shore was Ijuld, backed by upland in some places nearly one hundred feet in height. 
Near the northerly end was a promontory, now known as Castle Point. From its 
summit opened a view of uncommon grandeur. Out of the north came the lordly 
Hudson sweeping with majestic flow along the foot of the towering Palisades; on the 
east lay Manhattan, crowned with its primeval forest, and on the south Hamel's 
Hooftden rose out of the mist at the inner gateway to the ocean. 

The surface of the island varied into plain, hill and dell, all covered with a 
dense growth of magnificent trees. The gentle waves of the river rippled along its 
shores, and the heat of summer was moderated by the refreshing breeze that came up 
from the ocean. The English language has been exhausted to describe its beauty and 
attractiveness. 

When Colonel Stevens found that the lots in his " New C'ity " were not taken 
up with avidity, he gradually turned his attention to the possibility of making his 
island home so attractive that the residents of New York would flock to it as a place 
of rest and recreation from the weary city. If this could be brought about, it would 
insure revenue to his ferry, purchasers for his lots, and settlers for his city. Of 
course, it would take time, much labor, and great expenditure of money to perfect 
such an undertaking. Nature had done much to guarantee his success. There was 
the island unecpuiled in situation, unsurpassed in beauty ; but the people who were to 
pay tribute to its owner and absorb his acres lived on the opposite side of the river. 
They must not only be taken across, but taken in a safe, comfortable and expeditious 
way. The great obstacle to be overcome was the sad lack of ferry accommodations. 
Navigation at that time was not much advanced from what it was when " Jehosha- 
phat made ships." The ferry equipment consisted of two periaguas and two row 
boats. Tlie periagua was a sort of two-masted canal boat with lee boards. This was 
brought into requisition when there was wind enough to make the voyage to Man- 
hattan a probable success. AVhen there was a calm the periagua was useless. Then 
the row boat was brought out and propelled by a "white ash breeze." 

But if the boats were so sadly lacking in accommodations foi- passengers, what 
shall be said of the crews to which their management was entrusted ? For a long time 



Nearly all trace of this creek is obliterated by tilling in streets and constructing railroads. 



MOXOGItAPII HF IKHiOKKX. 41 

the crew of one of tliese periaguas comprised a negro and a dog. It is said that ohl 
Sinie had great respect for tlie intelligence of that dog. He insisted that it knew 
more than a Bergen County Dutchman, for when there was a wind the dog went 
straight to the periagua, and when there was a calm it went to the row boat, show- 
ing tliat it knew which boat was adapted to the weather, and there wasn't a Dutch- 
man ill Bergen County who knew enough for that. 

The ferry house on the New Jersey side consisted of three frame shanties, one for 
a waiting-room, one for a bar-room, and one for a warehouse, in which the farmers de- 
posite<l their produce to wait for a favorable opi)ortunity to take it to market. There 
was no scheduled time of departui-e from either side of the river, nor was a bell rung 
to notify i)eople who were desirous of cn).-;sing. On tlie New York side a negro with 
cheeks di.stended and eyes like stars starting from their spheres sounded a tremendous 
horn, invariably ending the blast with a loud call of " ITolioken away." Then the 
farmers with l)undles and baskets hurried aboard. When they should reach the west 
side of the river was a prolilem depending largely on the wind and tide for solution. 

With .such terrv facilities a man was excusable if lie lived in New York for half 
a century without knowing that lloboken existed, or that it could boast of any other 
distinction than that of being the plaee wiience came eggs, p(jultry and vegetables for 
bistable. It could not be expected that either nature or art, or both combined, would 
be able to persuade the lover of either t(j desert the Battery as a plea.sure resort, and 
brave the inconveniences and uncertainties attending a voyage to lloboken. Such 
cniile ferry accommodations meant isolation from New York, and isolation from New 
York meant depreciation in the value of property on the we.st side of the river. 

But the mechanical and inventive genius of tlie proprietor could not rest con- 
tenteil in the midst of such adverse surroundings. Plans for a better and more expedi- 
tious method of croasing the river were maturing in his miml. He was abreast of the 
men of his time who were then bu.sy in making a practical application of steam as a 
power in navigation.* As early as 17i)8 he had been jointly interested with Living- 



* In its notice of the " Aerial Ways " then on exliibition in lloboken, one of the Xew York papers said : " The inventor 
is Colonel John Stevens, of lloboken, who is one of tlie most persevering and successful machinists of our country, and whose 
name will be identified with one of the most important benefits ever conferred upon the internal commerce of the I'liited States. 
We mcin the introduction of steam navigation." 

In his work on the "Steam Engine," I'rof Kenwicksays: "John Stevens, of Hoboken, commenced his experiments on 
steam navigation in 1791. Possessed of a patrimonial fortune, and well versed in science, he was at the time wanting in the prac- 



42 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

ston and Roosevelt in placing a steamboat oa the Passaic River. He now constructed 
a boat for use on his ferry to be propelled by the newly ajjjilied power. In September, 
1811, the " JiiJuMin^' the first steam ferryboat in the world, made her trial trip on the 
Hudson River. It was put into service on the Vesey Street ferry, and on the 23d of that 
month made sixteen trips, with a probable average of one hundred passengers each trip. 

This b3at was run but a short time, and then laid up for tlie winter. She re- 
sumed her jilace April 12, 1812, and continued that season and part of the next. 
Then certain acts of the Legislature of the State of New York, conferring on Liv- 
ingston and Fulton exclusive privileges in the navigable waters (jf that State, Avere in- 
voked against it. One of these acts })rovided that if any pei'son without a license 
from them should presume to navigate the waters of the State Ijy boats or vessels 
propelled l)y the force of fire or steam, his boat, its engine, tackle and apparel should 
be subject to forfeiture to the grantees of the monopoly. They were authorized to 
seize the boat in the same manner as if it had been tortiously taken from them, and 
the courts were enjoined to render tliem all assistance. At that time the State of 
New York claimed exclusive jurisdiction over the waters of the Hudson, and owner- 
sliip of the land covered l)y those waters. Intending to l)anish from the North River 
the use of steam unless l)y their permission, antl especially to cripple Colonel Stevens, 
Livingston and Fulton gave to the Powles Hook Ferry Company an exclusive riglit 
to use steam ferrv boats from any point (jn the New Jersey shore for a distance of 
three miles north of that ferry. This included Hoboken and Weehawken, and, U^ the 
extent of its validity, dealt a heavy blow at the existence of those ferries. In the 
face of the claim to these exclusive rights, and tlie penalties following encroachment 
upon them. Colonel Stevens was foi-ced to retire his ferry boat to prevent its seizure 
and confiscation. Tiie "Jidiana'' was then laid up and went to decay. 

Gloom and disappointment settled on Hoboken. Its very life depended on the 
success of its ferries. For nearly two years steam as a propelling power had been 
used on one of them. In this time the ferry had become profitable, the new city 



tical mechanical .skill that was necessary to success ; he was hence compelled, at first, to employ men of far less talent than him- 
self, but who had been educated as practical machinists. His first engineer turned out an incorrigible sot ; his second became 
consumptive, and died before the experiment was completed. Stevens then resolved to depend iipcm his own resources, and 
built a workshop on his own estate, where he employed workmen under his own superintendence. In this shop he brought up 
his son, Robert L. Stevens, as a pi-actical engineer, to whom many important improvements in steam navigation and the most 
perfect boats that have hitherto been constructed, are due. During these experiments, Stevens invented the first tubular boiler." 



MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 43 

made a forwartl movement, and the people of" the City of Xew York resorted to it 
in great numbers. But the hand had slipped back on its (bal. Monopoly in its 
most repulsive form was crushing out its life. Again it was forced to ros<irt to the 
periagua and row boat. How to lircak away from them, with the legislation of New 
York preventing the use of steam boats except by the grace of her grantees, was a 
(pie.stion not yet capable of solution. But Colonel Stevens, though defeated, was not 
tli.sheartened. With a determination wliicli woulil not recognize defeat, he screwed his 
"courage to the sticking ]ila<'i'," and in a few months evolved a contrivance which he 
thought would checkmate the steam l)oat monopolists. 

On ^lareh 1'2, 1S14, he announced to the municipal authorities of the Citv of 
New York the completion of his new invention: "The Memorial of dolm Stevens; 
.showeth. That your Memorialist hath constructed a boat to be piopelled by horses oi- 
nudes, which he contemplates to run on the ferry from the fool of Vesey Street to 
llnbdkeii, and which he trusts will prove a comjilete substitute i'nr a steani Iioat ; 
that he is at present engaged in bnihiing another, wliich he expects will be reailv 
to run in three months from this time; that these lioats promise to be of incalcul- 
able value to the intercourse between this city and the deisey shore, particularly in 
facilitating the transportation of marketing to the Wa.shington Market. l!ut in order 
to render this improvement of public utility, conveniences for the landing of horses, 
carriages and niaiketing are indispensably necessary. Your ^lemorialist, therefore, 
prays that your lloiKuable Body would be pleased to cause such accommodation to be 
constructed for the aforesaid purposes as may appear necessary and proper." 

This he claimed was the first team feiry boat that ever plied on the Hudson River. 
It "had a circular platform in the center, with cleats to give the horses foothoM, 
and the shaft of the paddlewheel was made to revolve by means of cranks on a small 
wheel on either side of the shaft, geared to a large wheel on an upright spindle, like 
a crab or cider mill, with two or four arms extending over the platform, an<l to these 
arms two, four or eight horses or nudes were hitched. At first they were single- 
enders, and had to turn in crossing the river; but later, doul)le-enders were used, cap- 
able of running bow on.'"-' 



* Evolution of the Ferry Boat by S. B. Dod, Harper's Weekly, Jan. 6, 1889. It is incorrect to say that in tliis evolution the 
ferry boat passed from the periagua to a team boat and then to the steam boat. The evolution is coriectly stated in the text. 
The team boat was a backward step forced upon Colonel Stevens by the legislation of New Yorlc. 



44 MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEN. 

The authorities did not act upon his memorial witli the promptness wliicli 
lie thou2;ht its merits deserved, and, therefore, on the 28th of the same month he 
again addressed them. After reminding them of his new boat built on an 
extensive scale and improved plans, he asked for better landing accommudations 
on the New York side. He offered to bear tlie expense of these improvements 
on condition of an extension of his lease for five years, if the boats should 
be found, after adequate experiments, to answer the purposes intended. This 
proposition was accepted: "Resolved, That the Board do agree to the proposition 
contained in the foregoing letter from Mr. Stevens to the Chairman of the Ferry 
Committee, and whenever the said Committee shall be satisfied that the pro- 
posed horse boats are calculated to answer the intended [turjioses, that they report 
accordingly to this Board ; whereupon the Mayor is hereby authorized and directed 
to modify and extend the term of ^Ir. Stevens' lease in such manner as above 
stated in his letter." 

On December o, 1814, Colonel Stevens informed the Committee on Ferries 
that the horse boat had been plying through the season and had comjdetely 
"answered the purposes intended as well as a steam boat." He announced his 
determination to put on another horse boat the ensuing season, superior to the one 
then running. 

On Mav 13, 181.5, he wrote : " The horse boat is now in complete opera- 
tion, and I could wish the Committee and such of the members of the Board 
as can conveniently attend, would appoint a time, when the horse boat will be 
ready to take them over to Hoboken, that they might be able to form from 
actual observation a just estimate of the improvement resulting from that mode of 
conveyance." 

The invitation was aecejited. The trip proved a success, and the Colonel's team 
boat had apparently come to stay. He fondly hoped that the day had dawned when 
the foreigner from Manhattan would ])v'mir his obolus to the Hoboken ferrvman and 
be borne over the river to cool shades, commodious seats, and thirst-quenching re- 
freshments. But, alas ! how circumscribed is the horizon of human foresight. On an 
evil day in January, 1817, he entered into an agreement with the brothers John, 
Robert and Samuel Swartwout to lease to them for the term of ten years from May 1, 
1817, the Hoboken ferries. They promised that on the date their lease went into 



MONOGTIAPir OF HOUOKKX. 45 

effect tliev wduUl jilace on tlie Vesey Street ferry ''■ " two good horse l)oats of not less 
than eight horses to a boat," and on the Spring Street ferry "as many sail or ferry 
boats as the corporation" might deem proper. But in ahout a year these lessees be- 
came financially embarrassed, and in 1.S18 judgments were entered against them. The 
boats and liorses were seized and sold hy the sheriff, and bought in by the l)rotlu'r- 
iu-law, Philip Hone. On May 1, 1818, the City of New York gave him a lease for 
twelve years, and permission to "substitute a good substantial team boat in the place 
of a steam boat." Hone started in tiie enterprise without duly considering the rights 
of others, and, as Colonel Stevens always insisted, in disregard of the covenants in 
the lease to the Swartwouts which had been assigned to him when he purchased their 
interest in the ferries. 

In dune, 1818, Hone made the following announcement: "The Corporation of 
the City of New Vdik having granted to the subscriber a lease of the Hobokcn 
Ferrv, he has associated with him in that cstablisiinu'nt Mr. P]iilii> 1 )e Peyster, 
who will liavf the sole charge of conducting the same. AH applications, therefore, 
respecting the t'cnv will be made to him. Two horse boats are now in complete 
operation, with good accommodati(ms for passengers and cairiages, etc. ( >ni' of thcni 
will in future start from each side of the river punctually at every hour from five 
o'clock in the morning until eight o'clock in the evening." 

It will bi- observed from this that coinmnnication with Hoboken ceased at eight 
o'clock. No evening entertainments could be indulge<l in by New Yorkers with rea- 
sonable expectation of getting back home the same night. Hone's management became 
a source of great annoyance to Colonel Stevens. The latter owned "a puldic house at 
Hoboken, chiefly supported by tiif custom of tbe ferry, and the resort thereto from 
the citv as a place of entertainment." Hone not only prevented the Colonel's public 
house from entertaining in the evening, but against ail precedent and good order 
kept in his saitl ferry boats a " l)ar " for the sale of such refreshments as were fur- 



* The landing place was changed in May, 1S17, from Vesey .Street, because it was "too much crowded with carts," to Mur- 
ray Street ; but as Murray Street was " too remote from the market to accommodate the country people," the landing place was 
changed June 8, 1818, to Barclay Street, where it has since remained. The following is of interest : 

" To Hoboken : — A steam boat sails from the bottom of Murray Street every half hour from sunrise to sunset ; fare, one 
shilling; carriages from one dollar to one dollar and fifty cents. 

"A sail boat for the same place starts from the bottom of Spring Street; fare 12J cents. 

" To Weehawk. An open or sail boat goes from the bottom of Murray Street twice a day with passengers ; fare, nine cents." 

—Blunt's Slrangei-'s Guide to New York {1817) 223. 



46 Mo>Tor.T:Arii of itobokex. 

nished ;it tlie Colonel's "'76 House." '^' Worse than all these, Hone kept his horses and 
mules at work fifteen hours without rest or intermission, while on the short ferries to 
Brooklyn they were changed two or three times a day. This crippled the ferry, 
caused a tedious, uncomfortable and uncertain passage over the river, discouraged vis- 
itors, diminished the Colonel's revenue, and depreciated his projjerty. But why should 
Hone wliip up his overworked and hungry mules when the thirsty jiassengers were 
" cabined, cribbed, confined " on his boat, and must patronize " the bar " on board, 
or endure thirst unassuaged? The longer the voyage, the more money in his purse. 
The Colonel thought of the ease and rapidity of conveyance to Staten and Long 
Islands by means of Fulton's steam boats; he saw the multitudes flocking to tlie resorts 
there provided, and then turned with disgust to the mules tramping their circular tread- 
mill in a lazy, indifferent effort to get the boat to Hoboken, and its passengers to the 
refreshments awaiting them at his " jHiblic house." His wrath was kindled against 
Hone. He saw his great invention in the hands of others, and as he thought (per- 
haps justly) working irreparaljle injury to his hotel and other property. 

That part of the public, however, which was inclined to look upon the humor- 
ous side of things, poked fun at his boat and the method of its propulsion. One of 
the visitors to Hoboken has left a record of his triji across the river. He says, " We 
embarked on an arpxatic conveyance, called by the peo2ile of these parts a horse boat. 
But I am inclined to think that this novelty is a mere sham, a trick ujion travellers. 
There are a dozen sorrv nags in this contrivance, which o-o round in a circular walk, 
with halters on one end and lioams at the other extremity. How this orbicular move- 
ment can promote the rectilinear advancement of this maimndth boat is to me a mys- 
ter3^ And as we were six hours in crossing the river, I suspect that they go and 
come with the tide; and that the horses are a mere catchpenny, to l)ring their 
masters the trigesimo-secundal part of a dollar more on every head than the custom- 
ary ferriage levied on passengers. However, the unhapjiy quadrujieds appeared to 
strain very severely, and in their hinder quarters very particularly ; indeed, every 
sinew of the latter part seemed to be over-exerted, while the neck, head and fore- 
legs moved glibly enough, which is certainly a natural curiosity. I account for it in 



* Colonel Stevens and his lessees did not hesitate to continue the practice here condemned as late as 1830. "There are 
small stores in the boats for selling liquor, fruit, confectionery, etc., places of about 8 feet by 6 in size. The storekeepers pay 
$200 a year in each boat for the privilege of selling these articles." Stuart's North America; p. 3£7. 



MOXOGR.Vl'H oK HOROKKX. 49 

this way: as tlif linrsfs arc all in a string, and the liindtr jiarts of each one imme- 
diately subjected to the inspection of his foUower, these noble animals draw up their 
anteriors from jiride, and contract their posteriors from decency." . . . 

Notwithstanding the condition to which Ilonc had reduced the ferry he held 
on to it, uuieh to the annoyance and disgust of Colonel Stevens. Because of the 
inconveniences attending the crossing, the people of the city were not attracted to 
his beautiful island in the Hudson; its shady groves were not frequented; its city, 
begun with so much confidence in 1804, remained unlmilt. The Colonel was 
convinced that this state of affairs wouKl not change for the better so long as 
the ferrv was thus managed. lie tried to compromise his differences with Mr. 
Hone. He oftered to continue the lease to him without further controversy if he 
would close the "bar" on the boats and give up the lease he had obtained from the 
City of New York.* 

Tliis was refused, and picparations were made for a battle royal. Under advice 
of Richard Stockton, as his counsel, Colonel Stevens "on Tuesday, August 29, 1820, 
between four and fiNc i-. m.," went on the terry wharf at Iloliokeu. and there in the 
presence of Lucas \'an Boskerck and .lolm i.ee, informed .lohn \'au Boskerck, liu' 
ferrymaster, that he did then make entry to defeat the estate granted by the lease 
on account of the breaches of the covenants, and he then and thei-e demanded the 
immediate surrender of the i)ossession of tlie ferry house, wharf and appurtenances. 
All these demands were refused, as he exj)ected they w(ndd be. The suit begun 
with so nnich formality was never pushed to judgment. 

The Coloiu-1 went so far in his efforts to get rid of Hone's management that he 
began preparations to erect an opposition ferry for the ]iur|iose of crushing him. In 
May, 1821, however, all controversies were settletl by compromise. His sons, John C. 
and Robert L. Stevens, bou<iht the interest of I lone, and the ferrv was surrendered 
to them. Then they leased it from their father for a term of fifteen years. lie tlien 
memorialized the Legislature of New York for relief from the odious monopoly 
granted to Livingston aiul Fulton, tor it had rested, and was then resting very 
heavily upon him. He had U'arned from experience that horses and mules were 
a weak substitute fjr steam, and when jnit into competition with it were a sad 



* Mr. Hone's second lease from tlie city was for fifteen years, dated May 1, 1820. 



50 mono(;i:api[ of iiohokex. 

failuiv.''- Jjiit the day wIkmi this grant would be repudiated and the Legislature defied 
was near at hand. The right of that .State to exclusive navigation on waters dividing 
two States was being discussed by lawyers. It had been taken into the courts, and 
was nearing its final adjudication. The more it was examined, the more untenable 
seemed the claim. Its supporters were few, its oppitnents were many. 

The new lessees obtained from the City of New York a lease for the ferries for 
fourteen years on the condition that on or before the first day of May, 1822, they 
should place on the Yesey Street Feri'y a steam boat, the speed of which should be 
such as to make an equal number of trips per diem with the two team boats then 
plying. This requirement was directly antagonistic t<j the acts of the Legislature. To 
meet it the Messrs. Stevens immediately began the construction of a steam boat of 
" very superior accommodations," which was confidently expected to surpass every 
other ferry boat on the river, and capable of making more tri})s than the team boats, 
in less than half the time. 

The Legislature of the State of New York did nothing to modify their grant 
to Livingston and Fulton, or to aid Colonel Stevens to restore steam to his ferry. 
Failing to get relief from that source, he turned upon their licensees, and informed the 
proprietors of the Powles Hook Ferry that it was the purpose of the proprietor and 
lessees of the Hoboken Ferry to place thereon one or more steam boats. To this in- 
formation he added the following offer and defiance: "Provided, we are left undis- 
turbed in running steam boats on the Hoboken Ferry, we are ready and willing to stip- 
ulate (now) that steam boats of similar construction shall be placed on the Powles 
Hook Ferry. By such arrangement the tw(j ferries will be placed nearly in the same 
relative jiosition they now are, and a saving of nearly one-half the present expense 
will be effected. We would wish you to give us a speedy and definitive answer to the 
above proposition. It is, however, to be distinctly understood that whether the above 
proposition is or is not acceded to, we are fully determined to run steam boats on the 
ferry to and from Hoboken to New York." 

With this l)old defiance to the monopolists and their licensees, to the Legislature 



* His pniver was "that such pemiission may, by a law of this State, be made as will secure tu him and tu hi>. lessees the 
quiet and peaceable occupation and enjoyment of such rights as appertain to him as proprietor of said Hoboken Ferry on the 
New Jersev side, and to tlieni as lessees of said ferry as well on the Xew York side as on tlie New Jersey side." 

He insisted that the grant to Livingston and Fulton was nugatory, but for peace sake was willing to make them a reason- 
able compensation " for their grant of a right to run steam boats on the said Hoboken Ferry." 



J.33!dXS 



a M033 S 




MONOGKAPH OF IIOBOKKN. 68 

of New York ;in<l its unjust enactments, tlie controvei-sy, so far as Colonel Stevens 
was concerued, ended. The " Hoboken Steanil)oat Ferrj- Company," incorporated No- 
vember 3, 1821, placed on the ferry the steamboats Hoboken in 1822, and the 
Pioneer in 1823.* 

The new boats immediately l)eeame popular with the public. Tlii-y were comfort- 
able and comparatively elegant. The ladies' cabin was below deck, carpeted and 
warmed by n|Mn fire idaces.f Hoboken also immediately felt the pulsations of a, new 
life. From the noise and hurry of the City of New York, people in great niultituiles 
were attracted to it and its sylvan solitude. The place was close at hand, easily and 
comfortably reached, and ]>resented allurenuMits unsurpassed. 

"For Nature here 
WaiitouM as in lior prime, and playM at will 
Her virijin fancies pouring fnrtli more sweet, 
Willi ai)ove rule or art." 

Its prosperous day.s as a pleasure resort were between 1820 and IS.IO. Most of 
its beauties and attractive features have long since surrendered lo the iconoclastic 
march of improvements. Yet it will not be a waste of time to recall some of them. 
Thus we may have the secret of its power to allure fioni year to year such vast 
multitudes from the ( 'ity of New York. 

In front of the "76 House" was a beautiful lawn known as "The Green," 
bounded on the west by Washington Street, on the north by First Street, and on the 
east by the river. Ascending the sloping l)ank, and entering "The Green," one was 
immediately introduced to a spot wliieli for years had Keen the delight and boast of 
the people who dared to brave the inconveniences of crossing. Commodious seats 



* On the Spring Strwt ferry the horse boat remaiiieil until .July 1, 18i"). 

t The proprietors of the ferry were liberal in labor and expense to give the be^t aeconiiiiddation to the public. In the 
spring of 1828 Ihey advertised, "The public is respectfully informed that there are four Steam Boats per hour, on the Hoboken 
Ferry — three to Barclay and one to t'anal Streets. A Boat will leave Barclay Street and Hoboken regularly every twenty min- 
utes, commencing (by St. Paul's Clock,) at ihe even hour. The Fuiry Queen will leave Canal Street at the commencement of 
each hour, and Hoboken at tlie intervening half hour. The proprietors have four first-rate Steam Boats, viz., Hnbnken, Newark, 
Pioneer and Fidnj (Jiieni, employed at this ferry, and will endeavor to carry this present arrangement into effect with the punc- 
tuality and certainly travellers by this route have heretofore been accustomed to. Thecabinsoflhe.se boats are handsomely 
titted up." 



54 



XOXOlillAI'FI OF lIOlioKEX. 



imdcr the refresliiiii;- shade of wide spreading ehus, the deep verdure of tlie surrouiid- 
iiiir srardens, and the beautiful \vindiii<;-, raveled walks were well calculated to charm 
the weary citizen in his moments of relaxation. Amusements and refreshments in 
endless variety were at the call of the visitor. 

The walk, which had already been opened, Colonel Stevens completed into a 
deeply shaded promenade, winding gracefully in among the overspreading foliage, lead- 
ing l>y the river from the ferry around Castle Point to the dense woods on the 
north, then known as Turtle Grove ; not from the doves whose low music charmed 
its shade, but from the green turtle served up to the substantial citizens of New 



t^¥M4'.¥.mMMhi,mM.%tU:^M*,i:M:mi-.^ 



I 

I 
I- 

--~ *- 
St- 

^ I 

at- 
I 







I 

i 



IIOBOKEN 



SEASON TICKET. 



|j(mf, 1»24 



i 




HOBOKEN TURTLE CU'B TICKET. 



York, who in former times selected this pleasant and retired spot for their dinners. 
The memory of those festal days is perpetuated in "The Hoboken Turtle Chil)" of 
the City of New York.* This walk must have been completed in the early part of 
1826, for in that year De Roos, in his "Narrative of Travels in America," said: "A 



* I have not been successful in llxin^ the date of the organization of this chih. l!ut il was a well l;no\vn institution in 
the first quarter of this century. Thi- name " Turtle (irove" had been affixed to a part of what was afterwards known as Y.\\- 
sian Fields. It was spoken of as "the old resort of the Turtle Club." I am inclined to the belief that Hoboken became a 
resort for the turtle eating giistronomes about the beginning of this century. 



MONOGKAPII OF HOBOKEN. 65 

beautiful walk exti'uding for tw.i or tliree iiiik's iiloiij;- the Hudson is kept in tlic 
finest order, and cnuimands a noble view of the eity on the opposite shore. Ameriean 
aldermen have the same predilection for turtle whieli is supposed to characterize 
our own; and the groves of Hohoken annually witness a vast consumption of green 
fat at the celebration of their civic festivities." 

Another in 1828 said: "Following the walk tliat leads nortli to Colonel Stevens' 
seat for alimit half a mile, we arrived at one of the linest I'ountry seats and one of 
the noljlest views pri'sented by any spdt on the margin of the Hudson IJivei- in its 
whole extent. The view from this delightful si)ot is indescril)al)ly line, and cnihraces 
all the finest features and effects of laiulscai)e scenery that can he imagined, iind from 
its ju-ojection towards the river ancl the boldness of its site and elevation, it has a 
most commanding view u[> an<l down the river and of the City of New 'SorU.'"''' 

Hohoken was now attracting prodigious numiiers of visitors — on suiue days not 
le.ss than 2(»,(><I0 — hut did n<it seem to win many peniinnciit residents. Either the 
enterprising owner was devoting most of his time to (i(velo|iiiig the place as a pleasure 
resort, or else did not otter inducements sufficient to conveit the visitors into residents. 

In 182'.J an account of stock >howed : ( )nc post office, foui- hotels, four gidceries, 
three smitheries, one wheelwright, two carpenter shops, one livery stable, one distil- 
lery, one steel manufactory, three schools, and between four ;iiid live hundred inhab- 
itants. Xo lawyer, no physician, no minister, no justice of the peace! Ilapjiy Hobo- 
ken! In the high noon of its golden age! How the hearts of its peo|ile nnist have 
swelled with gratitutle for their absence, and with what earnestness they must have 
prayed that the day might l)e far distant when there should be a necessity for either.f 



* In Stuaii'^yuilh America, I. p. 327, it is said, "Colonel Stevens and |);irt of his family leside in a beautiful villa, about half a 
mile from Hohoken, situated upon a plateau of tine level ground overhanging the river. They have laid <jut their property adjoin- 
iu'the river, for about two miles, in public walks.which the inhabitiints of New York, who come over in prodigious numbers, en- 
joy very much. In this wav the value of the ferry is increased, as well as the rent of the hotel belonging to Colonel Stevens at 
lloboken, which is at present (Dec, 1829) rented for |I2,000 a year. The walks are shaded with beautiful willow trees and other 
ornamental wood." 

In Pidiumijue Beauties o/Hudaon Biier, it is said, " Xorth of the lawn is a gravelled walk, shaded by thick woods, which is a 
most delightful promenade. No expense has been spared to make this pathway one of exquisite taste, and full of romantic 
variety. It is lovely and grateful in the morning, at noontide, and at dew fall." 

t Compare this statement with one made in the lliMnnj and Gazdeer nf Xew Jersey in 183-1 : "Hobokcn, built chiefly on one 
street, and contains about 100 dwellings, 3 licensed taverns, many unlicensed houses of entertaiimient, 4 or 5 stores, and several 
livery stables and gardens, and between 6 and 7 hundred inhabitants.'' 

Vide foot note 5 and it will be seen why the town was built chiefly on one street. It is there .said; "The town plot will 
extend along the turnpike road towards Hackensack." 



56 MOlSrOGEAPH OF IIOBOKEN. 

In 1830, Turtle Grove, wliich liad been visited so often by tbe dinuer-luving 
aldermen and other gastronomes of New York, where many a young couple had 
been wounded by the arrows of winged Eros, (what time the westwind and the rain- 
bow carpeted the island with flowers), was imjiroved by winding walks and paths 
through which crowds of peojde randjled in the grateful summer shade, or, when 
weary, rested upon benches or the green sward. 

" Yellow fields of asphodel 
And amaranthine bowers." 

The breeze coming in from the ocean, laden witli hcaltli to the worn toiler of 
the city, made music through the leaves, and the Itirds chirped and twittered among 
the branches, making the place resonant with melody — paralleled only by the fabled 
island of ocean where the sirens sat in meadows lilooming with flowers, while their 
voices stilled the winds. There could be no other name for this charming spot than 
Elysian Fields, for did it not remind one of the Elya'ii (Uinpi of old, blessed with 
perpetual spring, clothed with continued verdure, enamelled with unfading flowers, 
shaded by pleasant groves, and refreshed by never failing fiuntnins; where the right- 
eous lived in perfect felicity, communing with each other, bathed in a flood of light 
proceeding from their own sun, and the sky at eve lighted up by their own constella- 
tions; the home to which the mortal relatives of the king of the gods were transported, 
without tasting of death, to enjoy an immortality of bliss. 

To entertain and })r()ti'ct from showers the throngs who came to these fields. 
Colonel Stevens, in 1830, erected a pavilion, generally called the " Colonade." It was 
opened for business in the spring of 1831. It was of Grecian architecture, devoted 
laro-ely to the worship of Baclius. Thither old New Yorkers were accustomed to 
wend their way to drink in the beauty of the scene and their favorite beverage, and 
to ioin in the lo Bacchc ! I'Ji/oi .' lacche ! Speaking of these fields and the woods ex- 
tendino- down towards the ferry, a writer of the time says : " He (Colonel Stevens) has 
restricted his pleasure grounds to a few l)eautiful acres, laying out the remaindei' 
simply and tastefully as a public ]iark. It is hardly possiljle to imagine one of 
o-reater attraction ; a broad belt of light underwood and flowering shrubs, studded at 
intervals with lofty forest trees, runs for two miles along a cliff which overhangs the 
matchless Hudson ; sometimes it feathers the rocks down to the very margin, and at 




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MONOGRAPH OF HoBOKEN. 69 

others leave.s the pebbly shore just rude enough to !)reak tlie gentle waves and make 
a music which mimics softly tlic loud chorus of ocean. Through this beautiful little 
wood a l)road well-gravelled terrace is led by every point which can exhibit the 
scenery to advantage; narrower and wider paths diverge at intervals, some into <Ic('])er 
shadow of tlie woods, and some shelving gradually to the pretty coves below." 

To add to the many attractions of the walk along the river, in 183G an excava- 
tion was made in the rock at Castle Point, where a spring had long existed. 
Thenceforth the water issued from the excavation, and thirsty proincnaders drank it 
at one cent a glass. To this excavation was given the name " Sibyl's Cave." * 

The old "'7n House," kept in 182o by Van Buskirk, in 1881 by Van Antwerp, 
and afterward by Tom Swift, was the first sto})ping-p]ace for the visitor. Here 
he obtained his first view of the delectable grounds. In summer the spacious lawn 
in front was thronged with limidreds seeking rest, pleasure, health and enjoyment. 
The portly New Yorker who had gone |i(i>|iiiing over the heated pavement in the 
morning, here lounged upon a commodious seat, sijiped refreshments, and grew grad- 
ually cool with the declining day. Here groups of children romixnl in unrestrained 
freedom, and young people now and then whirled in the tua/.y dance on the velvet 
lawn. The honest tradesman sat and breathed the sea-tempered air; the lawyer 
lost the chance of a fee to escape from his musty books to this breezy cniincnce; 
the orator left his discour.se unfinished to iiuisc on an appropriate conclusion; the 
editor flung down his pen in a passion, answered his devil's remonstrances with un- 
civil ejaculations, and hastened thither to puff out cigar smoke and settle paragraphs, 
inhale milk-jiunch and ideas in the same delicious moment. The actor who last 
night stalked before his audience as Richard or Othello, left his coat and his con- 
science in the theatre, and lounged here in a state of luxurious inanimation. In- 
deed, there were periods during the sultry season when all classes might here find 
a happy representative ; where the belle ami the beau, the rich and the poor, the 



* Gordon in his history says : "Ilobolien is remarkable chiefly as a place of resort for the citizens of New York during tlie 
hot days of summer ; the bank of the river is high, and the invigorating sea breeze may be enjoyed at almost all hours when the 
sun is above the horizon. The liberality of Mr. Stevens has opened many attractions to visitors, in the walks along the river 
bank over his grounds ; and in the beautiful fields studded with clumps of trees, and variegated by shady woods, the business New 
Yorker finds a momentary relaxation and enjoyment in the Elysian Fields, and the gastronomes find a less rural, though not a 
more sensual pleasure in the feast at Turtle Grove. The value of the groves of Hobuken to the inhabitants of New York is 
inappreciated and inappreciable. They are the source of healtli to thousands." 



60 MONOGKAPII OF IKHioKEN. 

worker ami the drone, the merry ami the iliseonteiited, met upon a common level of 
enjoyment.* Lucretius has left a descri])tion of a like scene of Saturnalian enjoy- 
ment: "These pleasures charmed and delighted them when the feast was over; for 
then all things please. Then reclining on the soft sward by a purling stream 
under the umbrageous boughs of some tall tree, they often enjoyed themselves at 
small cost when the season smiled and spring strewed the verdant earth with flowers. 
Then were there merry jests and banter, and peals of laughter ; then the rustic muse 
held sway ; then roguish merriment led them to adorn their heads antl shouldei's with 
garlands and flowers and leaves, and dance in unrestrained measure, moving their 
limbs awkwardly, and shaking their mother earth with heavy feet; while joyous cries 
and happy laughter arose, because all these novel and wonderful pranks flourished." 
Art had done much to sul)due and beautify the wilderness of the place. But this 
was not all. The projn'ietor being a man of wealth, enterjirise and mechanical genius, 
did not hesitate to devote his time and great abilities to add one attraction to another 
to draw visitors from the city. In front of the " '76 House," and generally surround- 
ing " The Green," as early as the fall of 1825, Colonel Stevens constructed a circular 
railway and placed thereon a locomotive. The wheels, now known as driving wheels, 
were like ordinary wagon wheels — twelve wooden spokes and a wooden felloe bound 
witli an iron band. There was no flange to the wheels, but they were kept on the 
rails by vertical spindles with wooden rollers pressing laterally against the inside of 
the rails. It was then known that the adhesion of the tire, forming the periphery of 
the wheels of the carriage containing the machinery of the steam engine, to the iron 
rails was sufficient to drag after the steam carriage a train three times the weight of 
the steam carriage with its machinery, on horizontal rails. Should it be necessary to 
pass over an elevation, some other means must be resorted to. To meet this necessity, 



* In the Iiilerpei(ul of June 15, 1831, a writer says : " Hoboken appears to be a place of universal resort this siiltrv weather. 
And well it may be, for there is not such anotlier refuge from tlie monster care within the precincts of our goodly city. Subject 
matter for a volume of specul.ation might be found in the countenances you meet tliere ; but our mind is usually taken up with 
more comfortable reflections than that of human countenances when we get there. The excellent soda water and mead, to say 
nothing of the lemonade, port punch, or spruce beer of ' mine host,' together with the fresliness of the afternoon breeze, are sub- 
jects which drive all meaner ideas from the mind. 

" Far up the Hudson, at what is called Turtle Grove, there is an airy and tasteful establishment, appropriately named the 
' Colonnade,' and kept by Mr. H. H. Dyer. We do not name this establishment by way of disparagement to any other, but 
merely because it is new, and suits our taste to a nicety. It will be thronged every sultry afternoon through the summer, if it is 
kept up in the spirit of its commencement." 




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MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEX. 63 

Colonel Stevens' engine gave motion to a cogwheel placed in the center between the 
wheels of the steam-engine carriage, the cogs of which worked in the cogs of a rack 
on a third rail placed equidistant between the other rails. It was the first locomotive 
in America driven by steam upon a track, of which there is any reliable record. 
AVhen it was removed from the circular railway a track was laid on the river-walk 
around by Castle Point to the Elysian Fields, on which the engine was to be put into 
use. There is a doubt if it was ever completed, though it was not far from it.* 

After the removal of the locomotive the circular railway was converted into a 
double track, with a gauge of two feet six inches instead of five feet, as it was when 
the locomotive was in use. Two light carriages were used, one on each track, and 
they usually went around in opposite directions. Two persons could sit side by side, 
each working a crank handle, or one could use both hands. The crank axle carried 
a pulley connected by a leather belt to a pulley on tlic main axle, on which were 
placed light wheels about three feet in diameter. These carriages were kept on the 
track bv the same device as was used on the locomotive. Tiie two carriages were 
frequently engagetl in a race, the inner one being liaiulicaiPiicd. When each was 
propelled by two strong men, the rate of speed was fully a mile in three minutes. 
A visitor to Hoboken said, concerning the railway : " The only object worth note that 
we saw was a circular railway for the exercise of the youth of both sexes. It is 
pleasantly situated under a clump of tall forest trees, several hundred yards in extent. 
There was a couple of carriages on it, driven with the liaml. Here you might observe 
a gay young gallant handing to seat some timid blushing miss, and gently folding 
in the stray portions of her airy drapery, while he plants himself by her side, and 
away they wheel, round and round, till the arm is tired, or the fair one gently 
whispers 'enough.' They now descend and retire beneath the surrounding foliage, 
to whisper (all very sweet, no doubt) of bright days to come; while their envied seat 
is again wheeling, in rapid revolutions, another fond and fluttering j)air." 

But another and more important contrivance, one which seemed to foreshadow the 



* Writings of R. C. Sands, 2d Vol., p. 287 (1835) : " A superb promenade along the margin of the river under the high banks 
and magnesia rocks which overlook it, on which it is intended to lay rails." 

Commercial Advertiser, July 12, 1831 : " The railroad now nearly completed from Hoboken Landing to the Elysian Fields." 

In History and Gazeteer of New Jersey it is said Bergen County has two railroads, "exclusive of that made by Mr. Stephens, 
along the North River." 



04 MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEN. 

gravitation, if not the elevated railroad,* was set up by Colonel Stevens for the 
admiration and use of the j)ul)lic. There can be no doubt that his attention was 
first directed to what he afterwards called " Round Iron Ways," by his son Richard, 
who, in 1825, was studying medicine in Paris. Richard collected all the informa- 
tion obtainable concerning the " Montagues Russes," of which there was one set up 
at the Beaujon, and one at the Tivoli. The information was gathered for the pur- 
pose of setting up one of tliese " Mountains," or what would now be called " Tobog- 
gans," at Hoboken, for the entertainment of visitors. In a letter to his brother John 
C, dated April 23, 1825, he says: "The best place at Hoboken, no doubt, would be 
on our liill.f The next best place, perhaps, at the school-house.J Wherever it is 
erected, there ought to be an establishment for refreshments of all kinds. If Pa 
would consent to renting oui- house, § you might for the first year have a sort of 
Vauxhall Garden, for which you might fix a price for entry. I don't know how these 
Montagues would take with our folks. They are great favorites here. * * * * 
It seems to me that the jilace you fix on for this establishment should be such 



* The following suggestions of Colonel Stevens show that, as early as I80O, he held |irotly elear views of elevated railroads 
through the city and across tlic Hudson. 

1. " By elevating columns on each side of the street, jihiced just inside the curb stones to the height of ten or twelve feet, a set of 
rails can be laid so as not to interfere with a carriage of any description passing through the same, and where streets are to be 
crossed the carriage with its load will pass under said rails. The subscriber will undertake to construct the rails with the columns 
and other fixtures for said distance for the sum of Ji340,0IK), one half payable in stock at ten per cent, above par. Tlie route of 
the railways is to be carried through lots below Church Street on a line as straight as practicable from the Battery to Harlem 
River. 

2. "Two railways, commencing at the fence forming the line of division lietween the Battery and Street, should there be 

elevated about ten or twelve feet above the pavement, so as to admit carriages of every description to pass freely through said 
street under said rails. The railw.avs are then to be carried on each side of Washington Street or fireenwich Street, sujiported on 
pillars of stone, iron or wood, pl.aced near the curb stones, extending to some point above the building lately occupied as the State 
Prison ; and rising gradually from a horizontal plane at the rate of twenty-five or thirty feet per mile, so as to be elevated at their 
respective terminations somewhere between sixty and seventy feet above said horizontal plane. Thence to proceed iit right 
angles, or at an angle nearly approaching thereto, to the conuuencement of a bridge across the Hudson River, still rising .at the 
same angle until said bridge shall reach the shore at Hoboken, so that the elevation will be somewhere between thirty and one 
hundred feet above the level of high-water mark. The railw.ays are then to proceed in a direct line over Bergen Hill to the 
termination of the canal west of Newark, to the Little Falls of the Passaic River, making the whole distance from Hoboken to 
said Falls short of fifteen miles." 

He proposed to construct the bridge on granite piers, from 200 to 400 feet apart. It was to be for passengers and 
teams, as well as a railway. Over this bridge he proposed to introduce pure water into the city of New York. He thought it 
would be belter than water from the Bronx River. 

t This was Castle Point. 

{ This w.as a building which Colonel Stevens had erected for his own children. It stood where the institute is now. 

i This stood on Castle Point, a little west of the present mansion. 




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M()X(M;i:AI>n OI- HdHOKKX. (57 

as to afford a variety of otlier amusements; lience, 'The Green' at Van Bnskirk's,- on 
this account wouhl be preferable, next to our liiil. SliuuKl you put up one, it strikes 
me you ouijht to subscribe to every newspaper in tlie city, or else some crabbed 
editoi' iiii-lit take it into liis head to write you down." 

In a letter to his mother, dated duly. 182-'), he says: "There is one Russian 
-Miaiutain unt far fnnn where I live. * * No doubt it would succeed in lloboken. 
The best place Ibr (.ne would be in front of Rob's house,t to run parallel with it 
towards 'The Green". It would be very pleasant to sit on ' The Green' and see the 
cars descend, and 1 think Kob miuht let his house to ijreat advantaiic, if it were con- 
nected with ii. I would make it thirty-live or forty feet high, and about two hundred 
long." 

When these suggestions ha. I pass...l throu-h the alembic of Colonel Stevens' mind, 

a ditt'ei-eni pruduet was evolved — .sonu'thing that bori' the stamp nf (u-iginalitv s(Mue- 

thing that looked beynnil a simple t()b(.g<r;,ii [\,v the amusement of the people to iirac- 
tical utility. Jlence, on the last day of the year 1828, he was prepared to issue the 
following notice : 

ROUND IRON WAYS. 

" An exliil)ilioii will take |)liu-o ri-sppctini,' tlicse wiivs on the green near the Mansion Ilousnof :Mi-. 
Stevens, IIol)oken, ti)-innrrow, tlie fii-st .lay ..f Jaiiiiaiv, 1820, of a natiiro eiitiivlv new. A carna<>-e 
will be inipelleil thereon throii,!,'h the air iiistra.l ..f .m the •jroiuul, an. I with a lapiility fai- cxceedinK 
any Laiiil ( arriaire." 

The e.\hil)iti.>ti .li.l not ome oif .in New Year's .lav, as jirnmised. It is doubt- 
ful even that the nutice was publishe.l. Unt on the L'llh .lay of daiuiaiv the 
"K.)und Ii-.ui Ways" were put .m exhibition. Literary and scieiitilic jie.iple attended 
it to see the w.indeiful railway. Among them were Xathaniel II. ('arter,;j; Editor 
of the Sf'i/rsi,/>iii, anil Professor Kenwick of Columbia College. 

The latter thus described it: 



* At tliat time Lucas V:m I'.oskirk kept llie "Tti House." 

t Robert L. Stevens' lioiise was on thenortti east corner of I'"irs>t and Hudson Streets. 

t To Mr. Carter, Colonel Sterens wrote on the following d:iy : " Yon remained so short a time on the ground last evening that 
I doubt whether you obtained a clear idea in what manner the moticm was given to the carriage suihcient, after striking against 
the springs, to cause it to return back again to the (dace it started from. This is effected by the descent of a weight wliicli at 
starting gives to the carriage such an impulse as is sufficient for effecting the purpose. Two men at a windli..ss will raise the 
weight by the time the carriage returns so as to keep up a constant motion. The velocity of the motion will depend on the 



68 MONOGRAPH OF IIOIIOKEN. 

"AERIAL WAYS." 

" We accidentally saw the other day a new specimen of the ingenuity of Colonel Stevens, which we 
know not how to designate hy any other title than that which is at the head of this article. The ' Aerial 
Ways,' in which we took a ride, may heconie as popular here as the ' Montagues Russes ' in Europe. They 
differ from the latter essentially, which we note, hecause they have been confounded with them in an article in 
the Evening Pod referring to the invention of Colonel Stevens. The species of amusement, called the ' Mon- 
tague Russe,' owes its origin to the actual mountauis of ice which are annually erected on the margin of the 
Neva, near Petersburgli. The good citizens of tjiat capital take great delight in descending from the sum- 
mits of those mountains with incredible velocity, but, like the boys formerly on the Flatten-barrack Hill, they 
are under the necessity of much time and labor of hauling their sleds up again. The ' Montague Rnsse ' is 
supported like common railways on the pillars placed at three or four feet distance from each other. The 
'Aerial Ways' of Colonel Stevens consist of two jiaralld iron rods, four hundred feet in length, running from 
a firm erection about eight or ten feet high to another perhaps forty feet in height. On these rods a carriage 
with four wheels run.s, which is propelled from the starting place by means of a weight, not more than two or 
three hundred pounds, attached to the machinery. The car ascends the rods to the utmost elevation and will 
not only return again to the starting place, but progress with any given velocity ad libitum, at a rate from ten 
to one hundred miles an hour. It is altogether, therefore, an original invention. As an amusement, it will 
also be seen, that the rapidity of motion may be regulated or accelerated according to the timidity or the fear- 
lessness of those who ride. How much further in the lengtli the rods may be carried, without any intermediate 
support, we are not at present prejiared even to conjecture. The present ways are erected in the green near 
the house of Colonel Stevens; but we understood they were to be removed to the public green near the ferry." 

They were fiiiislied and read^^ for tise in the sprino- of 1829. 

Beside.-? a Merry-go-roiind. a ten-pin alley, wax tigiires and a Camera Obscura, a 
Flying Machine, or a,s the (nvner etdled it, a " Wliirli^ii;' " wtis s(_'t up on the northwest 
corner of " Tiie Green." It was ti source of great wonder to visitors and jirofit to 
the owner. It was made of two cross poles sixty feet in length, mortised horizon- 
tally through a piece of timlier wliieli stood vertically on a pivot under ground. 
Under each of the four ends of the cross poles was afHxed a ctir or basket suitable 
for four persons. Tbe charge was twenty-five cents each. The baskets swung just 
clear of tlie ground. l)elow the surface and hidden from view a team of mules 



velocity which a lieavy Imily will ariiniiv in falling, say 32 feet — this weiylil, tlmngli, it raibc^ t(i tlie lieiglit of nearly 40 feet ; in 
falling l(i feet it acquires the vehieity iif .32 feet a soeonil ; in falling lii feet more, its aeqniied velocity will be increased to 64 
feet in a second ; bnt a velocity of 04 feet ui a second is equal to 3,840 feet in a niinnte, and 3,840 feet pei- minute is equal to 230,400, 
or 43.63 miles per hour. With such an astonishing velocity the mail could be carried from New York to Philadelphia in 
about two hours. But, inasmuch as the motion of the carriage neither begins nor ends with such velocity, so far will this esti- 
mate prove incorrect. We will then reduce tlie average velocity to 30 miles an lionr, whicli would enable us to convey the mail 
between the two cities in less than three hours ; however, by giving the weight a greater elevation, we can give a proportionable 
increase to tlie velocity of the carriage." 



.M(ini)(;i:aimi ok iiohokkx. 71 

was hitclu'il tn a (•r()ss-l)ar t-lose to the iipriLjlit. When the mules were urjfod 
f'orwanl tlu' Itaskels swuiiu; aiiMiinl the sixty-foot diaineter with siekeiiing velocity. 
On a holiday the |ir(i|irietor sniuetinies took in as nnicli as $225. ]Mr. P)arnnin 
once complimented him, saying: "It's a great invention; you go so tar and so 
fast, and yet are so near home when yon are done." 

If at any lime the.se sources of amu.'^ement failed to draw crowds from the city, an 
Ox roast was in order under the inaiiaiieuu'nt of such men as Xelse Brewer, Wallis 
MasDU, and Tom llyer. The l*'env ('iim|iauy presented the ox and il was iviasled 
where the Otto ( "ottage was afterwards erected. ( )n another occasion an Indian War 
Dance on " 'IMie Green" was announced. I>uch crowds poured over the ferry that the 
poor Red Skins took friglit, fled to Bergen Woods, and hid in the swamp. dust 
north of the Race Course was Fo.x Hill, consecrated to love-making, gypsy parties and 
picnics. < )n little I'ox ilill, a<ljoining, was a Deer Park, estahlished hy a western 
man. 

In McCarty's time at the " Colonnade," an advertisement ajipeared tliat a lady and 
gentleman woidd a.scend in a lialloon at Elysian Fields. They did not appear, hut 
two cats were on hand to take their place. 'Hiis was more than the assemhled 
multitudes, accustomed thougli they were to hiimbuggery, could stand. In their 
wrath they fell upon the balloon and tore it into pieces. Thomas and 'i'aliitha 
were permitted to journey homeward hy land, witlnait attempting a flight througli 
the empyrean. 

In the days of Dyer who preceded Swift in the " Colonnade " an inci|>ient "Ferris 
AVheel " was .set up on the sliore in the Elysian I'^ields. It consisted of two 
king poles iialanced in the middle upon a cross-liar which rested upon two 
uprights. These poles were wide enough ajiart to admit between them at the ends 
a basket or cai' which >wung on a jiivot as the poles revolved, and thus kept its 
upright position. In these visitors took seats. Alongside was a jierinanent structure 
of the same height as the revolving poles, upon four poles with a cabin on the 
upper platform in which the aerial voyager might rest to take a more deliberate 
view of the river and the citv liexmid. 

Instrumental concerts were given at the Pavilion every afternoon. "A Su])erb 
Brass Band " was in attendance on the lawn in front and performed a variety of 



73 .M(i\<)<:i; Ai'ii of ikii'.ok i;n. 

new and |iii]iiil;u- airs, overt in'cs and niarclics, wliilc the visitors promenaded tlic 
ii'raveilcd walks, oi- ivsted under llie shade nt' tlie trees.''' 

Ill 1S2S Colonel Stevens ottered a foO medal for tlie best oration to be delivered 
on the lawn in front of the hotel on the Fourth of .Inly. A newspaper of the day 
stiinnlated the eloipienee of the eoin])etitors as follows: " If loeal seenery has any effect 
in elevatini;- the mind and ins])iring generous sentiments, we know of no plaee better 
calculated to draw forth bursts of ehxpience than the rural retreat at Ifobokeii. 
Commanding a view of one of the noblest rivers and bays in the world, covered with 
the foreign and inland commerce of the young Republic, with a ])roud city lifting 
its liundred spires on one hand, and the variegated charms of nature on the other. 
Nor is the Jersey shore looking downward to 8taten Island and ujtward to the ruined 
fortresses on the banks of the Hudson Avanting in revolutionary associations. If a 
citizen can ramble on a bright afternoon along the banks of the 'noble North,' 
through the shades of lloboken, without feeling elo<iuent, poetical and patriotic, let 
him be assured that he is unfit to enter the list of competitors for the medal. Tlie 
successful candidate may be certain of attracting a numerous audience, not to be 
wedged within the w^alls of a church, l)ut seated u])on the green turf of the great 
'Temple of Nature.' " John P. Jackson, then a young lawyer of Newark, afterward 
Vice-Presiileiit of the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company was aw^arded 
the ]irize,f but bad weather jirevented the celebration and extinguished the oration. 
Sunday was the great day of the week for Hobokeu. It woukl have been 
difficult to count the multitudes which crossed the river to visit the place on that 
day. This fact made an unpleasant impression on the old-fashioned people who had 
been taught to " Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy." A writer in describing 



* Von Kiiunicr in liis America iiiut tin' Amerlmn People said : " Holioken on the otlier side of tlie Hudson, is likewise situated 
on Heiglits, wliieli toward the interior spread nut into plains ; while on the river side the descent is ahrupt, and a heautiful walk 
leads down to the water's edge. AVhen we visited Holioken many persons liad gone over to witness the herculean feats of the two 
Ellsler Ijrothers. The show cost nothing, as the proprietors looked for a recompense to the increased number of passengers on 
the ferrv lioats." 

t June 30, 1S2S, .John P.Jackson enclosed his competitive oration. It was awarded the prize, as appears hy the following 

certificate : 

"The ])iece enclosed and offered by John 1'. Jackson we consider the best of the iiroductions submitted to us as orations for 

the -Itli (jf July at Hoboken. 

"John J. Morgan, 

" E. A. Bauckei!, 
" J. Arc. Smith." 



MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEN. 75 

a siinuiier trip to New York and tlie CaiuuUi.s sai.l : "Oi, Sunday afternoon we 
stept into a small steamer, bound across tlie river, where lie, in all their natural and 
cultivated beauty, the Elysian Fields; meant to be, I suppose, a second edition of 
those heavens of the ancients; l)ut Judginjr from a description of the one, and a sight 
of the other, tin; modern seem neither greatly improved nor enlarged. There are, 
however, hill and dale, winding walks, gra.ss-covered plains, and shaded seats in great 
profusion ; and altogether they do much credit to the taste of the proprietor and 
the public. There appeared to be a considerable degree of levity amongst those 
who resorted to this spot of Sunday recreation, which was but little in accordance with 
our Scotch notions of Presbyterian propriety." 

A lady writing of the Domestic Manners of the Americans said: "The price of 
entrance to this liitle lOden is the six cents you pay at the ferry. We went there 
on a bright Sunday afternoon, expressly to see the humours <,f the place. Many 
thousand persons were scattere<l ihrongh the groun<ls ; of these we ascertained, by 
repeatedly counting, that nineteen-twentieths were men. The ladies were at cluiicb. 
Often as tlie subject has pressed upon my mind, I tliitd< I never .so strongly felt 
the conviction that the Sabbath day, a holy day, the dav on which aloix' the great 
majority of the Christian world can spend their hours as they please, is ill passed 
(if passed entirely) within brick walls, listening to an earth-born creature, charm he 
never so wisely. 

It is true that at Iloboken, as everywhere else, there are reposoires, which, as 
you pa.ss them, blast the sen.se for a moment, by reeking fumes of whiskey and 
tobacco, and it may be that the.se cannot be entered with a wife or daughter. The 
proprietor of the grounds, however, has contrived with great taste to render these 
abominations not unpleasing to the eye ; there is one in particular, which has quite 
the air of a Grecian Temple, and did they drink wine instead of whi.skey, it 
might be inscribed to Bacchus; but in this particular, as in many others, the ancient 
and modern Republics differ. 

It is impossible not to feel, after passing one Sunday m the churches and 
chapels of New York and the next in the gardens of Hoboken, that the thousands 
of well-dressed men you see enjoying themselves at the latter, have made over the 
thousands of well-dressed women you saw exhibited at the former, into the hands 
of the priests, at least for the day. The American people arrogate to themselves 



76 MONOGRAPH OF IIOBOKKN. 

a cliaracter of superior morality and religion, l>iit tlii.s division of their hours of 
leisure does not give me a favorable idea of either." 

Now and then there was an attempt to do something grand and out of the 
ordinary by way of entertainment. Tlie most unique tiling of this kind was known 
as "The Buffalo Hunt." It was conceived and perfected )<i(li rasa by tliiit prince of 
advertisers, P. T. Barnum. In those days his conceptions wei'e so novel and his 
advertisements so realistic that the 2K'oj>1c never <|uestioued them. Had he turned a 
horse in the stall and then iidvertised an exhibition of a horse with his head where 
his tail ought to be, crowds would have flocked to see the prodigy. 

In June, 1843, a herd of yearling Buffaloes was on exhibition in Boston. Bar- 
num purchased and brought them to New Jersey, hired the Trotting Course at 
Hoboken, chartered the ferry boats ibr one day, and then issued the following 
advertisement : 

GRAND BUFFALO HUNT. (Free of Charge.) 

"At Hoboken, near the ferry, on Thursday, August olst, at o, 4 and 5 o'clock i-. bi., Mr. (._'. I). 
French, one of the nio.st daring and experienced hunters of the AVe.^t, has arrived thus far on his way 
to Europe with a herd of Buffahje.s cajitured hy himself near Banta Fe. He will exhibit the method of 
HUNTING THE WILD BUFFALOES and THROWING THE LASSO, at Hoboken, on Thursday ; 
and in order to place this novel exhibition within the means of every man, woman and child, it will 
be FREE TO ALL, and will come off' on a tine piece of ground within a few rods of Hoboken Ferry, 
capable of accommodating 100,000 persons. 

THREE DISTINCT RACES 

will take place at .S, 4 and 5 o'clock r. M. On each occasion a herd of 15 to 20 Buffaloes will 
be let loose. The City Brass Band is engaged. Extra ferry boats will be provided. For particulars 
see bills. If the weather should be stormy, the sport will come off' at the same hour the first fair day." 

Barnum says he was careful not to state the age of the Buffaloes. This left the 
public to think of them as wild and fierce, fresh from their native plains. The day 
was warm and delightful, and no less than 24,000 people crossed the river to enjoy 
the cooling breeze and see the " Grand Buffalo Hunt." At a few minutes after 
three o'clock the herd was let loose. French, the hunter, dressed in approjwiate 
Indian costume, mounted on a fleet gray horse, uttered an Indian whoop. But the 
bewildered calves did not know what was expected of them and did not run until 



MONOGRAPH OK IIOBOKEN. 79 

the crowd gave a great shout exiiressive at once of derision and delight at the liarni- 
less humbug. This started them on a weak gaHop. Immediately French gave 
pursuit. After ])laying with them about two-thirds around the course, he threw his 
lasso over the head of the largest calf. The crowd roared with laughter. When 
within three-eights of a mile from the starting j)oint the herd broke through the 
inside fence among the multitude. Then it became the people's turn to run, and the 
ru.sh was tremendous. Flight in every direction was in order and the devil take the 
hindmost. Pic-nics spread out in grassy angles, which promised inviolate jirivacy 
from intrusion, were invaded and abandoned. 'J'he trees became places of refuge, 
and every hole and corner whicli promised security was tenanted. ISIeauwliilc tlie 
gorgeously arrayed liunter held on to the captured calf, until in passing a marshy 
place tlie liorse sank knee deep in the moras.s, and its rider let go the lasso. The 
animal tlicii miidc olT and joini<l his kindred fugitives. French soon liberated him- 
self and again, with lasso in hand, rode over the hill and out of sight oi' tiie 
s|)ectators. The escaped Ihiffalo remained scampering among thi^ people for over 
half an hour. Aliont five o'clock three of the herd came round near thcs .starting 
place, when French a^ain nuninted to renew the pnrsnit in earnest, and requested the 
people "to give ample room and verge enough." At the lirst throw of the lasso he 
caught one of the calves by the fore leg, but in iiinning through a swamp the lasso 
slipped, the Ihilfalo got free and ran among the multitude. Then recommenced the 
scene of flight; "rout on rout, and confusion worse confounded," among men, women 
and children, of all ages, sexes and conditions, with a most indescribable variation 
of circumstances, panic and helter-skelter retreat. Mr. Frederick Stevens Masters, 
who got up a tree high among its branches, fell to the ground and died. A 
woman with a child in her arms, standiuir on the ed<:e of a hi"h bank, was frightened 
at one of the aninnds making a plunge toward her. She step])e(l backward to avoid 
danger and fell down the bank. She was severely hurt. Two young men fell 
overboard from one of th(' boats. They were rescued with severe injury to one. 

Some of the buffaloes were ca]ilured as contraband in the streets and apju'opri- 
ated by the adventurous captors; others escaped to the woods. The whole affair was 
tame and s])iritless, the animals affording about as nnich sport in the chase as a score 
of swill-fed cows from an uj)town dairy. The people did not know who hail provided 
the entertainment, but every one of the 24,000 who crossed the ferry to witness it 



80 MONOGRAPH OF HOBOKEN 

contributed to the purse of the enterprising Barnum, six and a quarter cents to 
get to Hoboken, aiul six and a (juarter cents to get away. 

Tlius ends the story of this best and most attractive of tlie jdeasure resorts 
of ohl New York. 

In the peroration of his funeral sermon over Hamihon, tlie eloquent pi'eaeher, 
mistaking the locus !ti quo of the duel in which he received liis death wound, 
jDointed to the beautiful Island and said : " Ah ! ye tragic shores of Hoboken ! 
Place of inhuman cruelty ! " But we being more certain of our premises, and 
knowing that nothing more tragic than Barnum's Buffalo Hunt, or more inhuman 
than Tom Hyer's barbecue is worthy of mention, may more truthfully say. Ah ! ye 
enchanting shores of Hoboken ! Place of jioetic beauty : so often visited by the l)est, 
the fairest, the brightest of this great city ; where the exhausted and the toil worn 
went to greet the hoaltli-laden ])reeze as it came up from the ocean. ; where nature 
and art combined to make man forget his mortality in rapturous delight ; where the 
devices of the catch-penny rivaled the inventions of genius in drawing and enter- 
taining visiting nuiltitudes : The heart grows heavy when the eye sees that your 
Elysian Fields no longer hold out a refreshing welcome to the heavy laden, nor rest 
to the weary ; that your grand old trees over whic^i the Dryads presided, have, by 
the wand of some evil fairy, been turned to ugly brick and mortar; that your grav- 
elled walks have vanished and your pel)bly beach been jn-ofaned by huge ware- 
houses, and by palaces which go down to the sea; that "The Green," where the 
"Flying Machine," propelled by the hidden mule, out-flew the sea-bird ; where 
experimental railways on the earth and in the air delighted and instructed the 
visitor ; where old New York on commodious seats, beneath umbrageous oaks 
recruited its wasted energy, drank the deceptive mead, or sipped its brandy and 
water, is gone to make room for palaces where "bier" from over the sea is ever on 
draught. But your beauties, hospitalities and entertaining devices will never l)e quite 
forgotten. History will perpetuate their charms and laughter paint an aureola around 
their memory. 




